Saving Monarch Butterflies, Gardening for Butterflies & Other Beneficial Insects, Growing a Greener World Author Kylee Baumle
Kylee Baumle author of “The Monarch: Saving Our Most-Loved Butterfly” was featured on Growing a Greener World episode 804 “Gardening for Butterflies & Other Beneficial Insects.”
“Gardening for butterflies and other pollinators was one of the most common responses In a survey Growing a Greener World sent out to our email subscribers, as one of their most important gardening goals in the upcoming year. Many responded that they planned on creating a butterfly or pollinator garden soon and would like more information on how to attract and protect them.
Additionally, many people wanted to know more about how to attract and raise monarchs specifically.
The image on the homepage of our website for this episode shows one of the most-loved and most threatened butterflies – the monarch. The image also shows one of the most problematic plants that butterflies are attracted to (along with many other pollinators). It’s buddleia, or commonly known as butterfly bush. While it is indeed beautiful and commonly found in many home landscapes, it is now considered highly invasive in many parts of the country.
Based on those replies we created this episode. However, we can only skim the surface in what amounts to about 22 minutes of information. Fortunately, there is a wealth of good information online and in books. We were fortunate to have several knowledgeable experts work with us during the creation of this show. One was Kylee Baumle. Her newly released book; The Monarch – Saving Our Most-Loved Butterfly is a great resource to learn more about monarchs and their plight. You can order it in the link below.”
Read more and watch the episode:
https://www.growingagreenerworld.com/episode-804-gardening-butterflies-beneficial-insects/
From Kylee Baumle, “The Monarch: Saving Our Most-Loved Butterfly.”
“Every fall, spectacular orange and black clouds of monarch butterflies fill the skies as they migrate from across North America to Central Mexico. West Coast populations make a similar though much shorter trip to coastal California. The National Wildlife Federation calls the monarch migration “one of the greatest natural phenomena in the insect world.” Not long ago, monarchs numbered in the billions, but in the last 20 years their population has dropped by 90%, due to habitat loss from pesticides, modern farming practices, urban development and other human activity. An estimated one million acres of habitat are lost each year.
But today, an army of citizen scientists, students and gardeners is engaged in restoring this beloved pollinator’s habitat – the wildflowers and milkweed and feeding corridors – so that one of nature’s most beautiful creatures will still be there for generations to come. And it starts in our own backyards.
The Monarch showcases this magnificent butterfly with eye-popping photos, fun facts about a monarch’s life cycle, and things to know about the vital role that pollinators play in our ecosystem. Monarch enthusiast and nature blogger Kylee Baumle provides “action” projects for all ages, from planting milkweed and wildflowers to making butterfly watering stations…to volunteer activism.”
