Lots of milkweeds at Pleasant Valley Conservancy
The Monarch butterfly is a species of great conservation interest. The survival of monarchs is linked to milkweeds. Monarch caterpillars eat only milkweeds, and monarch females lay their eggs on milkweed plants. Because milkweeds are becoming scarce on the landscape, environmental groups are encouraging the planting of milkweeds. The easiest to plant and raise is the common milkweed, Asclepias syriaca. However, other milkweed species also support monarchs, as well as other butterfly species.
We don't need to plant milkweeds at Pleasant Valley Conservancy because our prairies and savannas support extensive native populations. The table below lists the seven species we have. The only one that is not native to the site is butterfly milkweed.
The most common milkweed at Pleasant Valley Conservancy is, of course, the common milkweed, which is the species that most conservationists are planting. This species establishes well and because it is clonal, it easily forms large patches. Also, it has a wide habitat tolerance, growing well in both prairies and savannas.
At Pleasant Valley Conservancy it does especially well in our oak savannas, and I estimated one clone in Unit 11C at almost an acre in extent.
Purple milkweed, a State endangered species and one of the signature species at Pleasant Valley Conservancy, seems to be especially preferred by monarchs. When we were doing research on this species we established a milkweed forbs garden where all the species in the table except short green milkweed were planted. The monarchs went preferentially to the purples, ignoring the other species that were growing nearby. In order to protect our purple milkweed patches, Kathie monitored them and moved all developing monarch caterpillars to a nearby patch of common milkweed.
We don't need to plant milkweeds at Pleasant Valley Conservancy because our prairies and savannas support extensive native populations. The table below lists the seven species we have. The only one that is not native to the site is butterfly milkweed.
The most common milkweed at Pleasant Valley Conservancy is, of course, the common milkweed, which is the species that most conservationists are planting. This species establishes well and because it is clonal, it easily forms large patches. Also, it has a wide habitat tolerance, growing well in both prairies and savannas.
At Pleasant Valley Conservancy it does especially well in our oak savannas, and I estimated one clone in Unit 11C at almost an acre in extent.
Common milkweed |
Purple milkweed, a State endangered species and one of the signature species at Pleasant Valley Conservancy, seems to be especially preferred by monarchs. When we were doing research on this species we established a milkweed forbs garden where all the species in the table except short green milkweed were planted. The monarchs went preferentially to the purples, ignoring the other species that were growing nearby. In order to protect our purple milkweed patches, Kathie monitored them and moved all developing monarch caterpillars to a nearby patch of common milkweed.
Milkweed species at Pleasant Valley Conservancy
Latin name
|
Common name
|
Habitat
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Asclepias exaltata
|
Poke milkweed
|
Woodlands and savannas
|
Asclepias incarnata
|
Swamp milkweed
|
Wetlands and wet prairies
|
Asclepias purpurascens
|
Purple milkweed
|
Savannas
|
Asclepias syriaca
|
Common milkweed
|
Savannas and prairies
|
Asclepias tuberosa
|
Butterfly milkweed
|
Dry mesic prairies
|
Asclepias verticillata
|
Whorled milkweed
|
Dry mesic prairies
|
Asclepias viridiflora
|
Short green milkweed
|
Dry mesic prairies
|
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