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Building a Better Monarch Butterfly Garden
August 23 @ 11:00 am – 12:00 pm
This talk will help attendees to better understand why Monarch butterflies are in peril, why their conservation matters, and how partnership between the Horticulture Industry and gardening public can help to restore this beloved native butterfly to sustainable status. It covers the fascinating natural history of the monarch, including its spectacular long-distance migrations and special relationship with milkweed, as well as best milkweed species for attracting and sustaining monarchs and native bees in gardens. Recent research showing that garden design and placement matters, and that cultivars of native milkweeds (“nativars”) have conservation value for gardens, will be discussed, as well as how to prevent a garden from becoming an “ecological trap” for monarchs due to predation by invasive wasps or planting the wrong type of milkweed. Consumer demand for milkweed seedlings and nectar plants is burgeoning. Information from this webinar will help garden center personnel, Master Gardeners, and others to better advise customers and other stakeholders about butterfly gardening.
Presented by Dr. Dan Potter – Professor; Urban Landscape Entomology; Insect-Plant Relationships at University of Kentucky
