I am Kay MacNeil, seriously deranged lover of caterpillars and butterflies! Am I making you smile? In the 50’s I was a kid that collected caterpillars. There isn’t one Old Bouser that you know who didn’t do this. Well, maybe not big city kids. Anyway, in the fall the sidewalks always had a random furry caterpillar walking across it and we all had a box full of them. We’d keep them for a couple of days, yes, let them crawl up our arms, and then let them go, totally oblivious to what kind of caterpillar they were, what they ate, or what kind of butterfly they would become. Did we even Know they became butterflies and moths? Not sure. (Watch my youtube video 2018 Update and hear my childhood story at the end.) They were like free teeny plush toys.
As an adult, I would see the occasional caterpillar and was sort of getting the hang of what food they wanted to eat, but when I lined up The Husband after work and the kids after school, the caterpillar would invariably be gone.
Somebody Ate It!!!
Zip forward to 2015 and 2016 when the plight and low numbers of the monarch were becoming well-documented. Hey, what can I do about this?
In 2015 I got started on my great interactive effort with monarchs. I searched the south side of Chicago corn fields for milkweed. Nope, only RoundUp ready soybeans! By November I had checked with a girlfriend about milkweed in Indiana. In a typical “lake effect” snowstorm, my friend, Barbara, and I harvested my first milkweed to distribute to those who had none.
Gardeners all over Illinois could plant milkweed for monarchs to lay their eggs on and save monarchs.
Gardeners all over the Midwest could help do this.
Gardeners all over the United States could do this!
Eureka! Gardeners With Milkweed in their Yards Could Do This!
Now you’re looking at this web site and YOU can help do this!
I’ve got information, seed, just what you need.
