Summer 2022 - Impacts of the Weather

Every year is a little different. Last year, we had a cold snap that slowed the Monarch migration down. This year, the first Monarch Butterfly appeared in my garden in early May. My Milkweed was about 12” high and spreading everywhere! But, then there were no more butterflies. We had a heat wave and now the Monarchs were not laying eggs. I watch one flit on a Milkweed leave, then flit off again. She looked like it was too hot for her to settle on the leaf. And if she had laid eggs, they may have died because it was too hot.

The first eggs I found were by accident. I pulled up the Milkweed sprouts that were outside the garden limits I set for it. I always place these sproutlings in vases in case I can get one to root. That gives me some plants for inside my nursery. Within a week, I discovered that Monarchs found those sproutlings and I ended up with six babies. They turned out to be my June caterpillars. By July 4th, they were in cocoons.

As always, there is one last caterpillar. I found it on September 25th and it spun a cocoon on October 7th. Fearing that it would emerge when the weather was too cold for it, I took it to the greenhouse at Alverno College. I thought it would live in the greenhouse for awhile. But, the weather stayed mild and the students let it go on October 21st. We all celebrated and are sure it made it to Mexico!

By the end of the summer, I successfully released 35, including the one at Alverno College.

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