01.05.08 MILKWEED SCULPTURE

The dry remains of the milkweed plant, Asclepias syriaca, take on a particularly tortured appearance this time of year. They have shared their beautiful purple flowers and then entertained with the hundreds of silky parachuted seeds they release on the breeze. Now their empty pods and sturdy stalks stand sentinel through the winter storms. A plant with virtues we all might hope to emulate.

09.22.07 MONARCH MIGRATION

The monarch butterflies, Danaus plexippus, are taking the hint and leaving for the south. Suddenly with the change of the season we start to see them flying high in the air instead of just from flower to flower. Ours are on their way to their winter homes in Florida, Texas, and Mexico. They have no problem flying over the ocean if they need to on their way. Monarch butterflies usually only live for about two months around here, basing their life cycle around different varieties of milkweed, genus Asclepias, which their larva devour. Their trip south and vacation there is longer than their average life cycle. Some butterflies will enter a special state called diapause helping them live longer. But the butterflies which return next spring may be several generations removed from the butterflies who left here. Amazing.

06.17.07 MILKWEED

The roadside now also offers up plenty of milkweed, Asclepias syriaca. This big gaudy mass of blooms attracts many different insects which provide pollination. As a child I was very fond of the strange spiney pods which hung from these plants in the fall and winter, especially when they cracked open and hundreds of beautiful ”parachutes” floated in the breeze. The down from these flying seeds has been reported to be an insulator as effective as goose feathers. This time of year, though, the entertainment comes from the monarch butterflies, Danaus plexippus, which use this plant as a nursery for their eggs and larva.