August 9, 2014
This summer, we had several butterflies at our home. I did manage to shoot several pictures of them on the flowers in the garden. It is so interesting to see how different their little bodies are from one species to another. Not being a “Lepidopterist”, (one who professionally studies butterflies and moths), I don’t know all the correct names for each of the butterflies, but they were enjoyed none the less.
While scanning through Pinterest, I noticed a pin of the Monarch butterfly. There were three different Monarchs on my butterfly bushes this year. I did a little searching on the web and found that the Monarchs seem to be needing more milkweed plants to lay their eggs on in the midwest. Researchers are noticing a decrease in their population. They migrate thousands of miles each year, but after putting information into a computer program, they have come up with the major factor in their decline, is the lack of milkweed plants.
After checking out a few milkweed plants, I have decided to try planting an orange butterfly milkweed, Asclepias tuberosa, in my garden. It grows here in Northern Kentucky, where our home is, and grows in most of the mid-west and on the east coast. Blooms are reddish-orange and erupt in early summer. It attract butterflies and hummingbirds.
Now, I am off to find a plant or seeds, whichever is better at this time of year…
