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reasoningdaily · 1 year

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Oliver Hernandez’s front yard hums with plenty of bugs for the 12-year-old and his friends to find.

“It’s kind of fun just knowing that there are lots of caterpillars in the yard,” he said.

About a third of the yard looks like a teeny swath of prairie, with wild indigo, bee balm and, until recently, a key plant for monarch butterflies: common milkweed.

Last fall, the city of Overland Park told Oliver’s mother to rip the milkweed out of her pollinator garden.

That bummed Oliver because it’s a plant where brightly striped yellow, black and white caterpillars would appear each summer, grow fat on leaves and transform into the feather-light marvels of nature most famous for what they do next.

“They are pretty,” he said. “Also, whenever they become butterflies, they fly to Mexico. I think that’s pretty cool.”

Across the U.S., milkweed bans are disappearing. But this Kansas suburb and plenty of other towns and cities across the Midwest continue to define it in their city codes as flora non-grata.

Sometimes city, county and state rules conflict, leaving homeowners to navigate mixed messages from local governments that can’t see eye-to-eye on whether to promote milkweed or kill it off.

City workers may not have much heart for enforcing these rules. The plight of the continent’s dwindling monarch population is, after all, well-known.

Ginger Werp, Oliver’s mother, got the impression that the city worker who showed up at her door in late September didn’t really like telling her to remove environmentally beneficial plants.

“Our world is becoming degraded and needs us to change,” Werp said. “Not all of the cities in Johnson County have this rule.”

In fact, Werp points out, this county encourages homeowners to plant common milkweed and reimburses part of the cost for people who replace grass turf with native plants — including this one. The goal is to feed wildlife and fill the soil with deep roots that absorb stormwater and slow the pace of pollution washing into streams.

Werp knows about the program because she works at a nonprofit organization that, among other things, helps the county run it.

And she knows about native plants because wading into prairies to identify species and collect seeds for habitat restoration projects is her full-time job.

A clash of aesthetics

Oliver’s front-yard insectary likely came to the city’s attention because his mother and her neighbors have very different tastes in landscaping.

On a street lined with neatly trimmed bushes and traditional lawns, Werp’s little meadow is perhaps 12 feet by 7 feet. The tallest plants, native Maximilian sunflowers, tower above her head.

Instead of mulching the bed in the typical Suburban style (with cedar chips or other store-bought options), Werp lets fallen sycamore leaves mulch her plot.

Rather than chopping down plant stalks in the fall, she lets them stand, so her family can watch finches raid the garden for seeds all winter.

Werp knows this isn’t everyone’s cup of tea.

“I’ve had some uncomfortable conversations with neighbors about it,” she said of her flower bed. “But it doesn’t bother me. … I think it’s pretty, I think it’s fun. My son and I have a good time out here.”

She supposes a neighbor became concerned that her naturalistic landscaping would hurt home resale values.

A monarch caterpillar and a milkweed beetle munch on common milkweed in Ginger Werp's garden in Overland Park last summer. Ginger Werp

But when a city worker showed up to inspect her handiwork, he said most of the plants could stay. She only had to remove the contraband common milkweed, Asclepias syriaca.

Werp agreed and the matter ended there.

Had she refused, the city could have sent someone to remove the milkweed and charge her for the work.

Overland Park’s code allows it to prosecute violators, though it’s not clear that the city would actually pursue something so stringent against a butterfly enthusiast. The penalties include a fine of $50 to $500 and/or up to 10 days in jail.

City codes vs. conservation

Other cities in Kansas and nearby states frown on milkweed, too — usually common milkweed but sometimes its relatives, as well.

Winfield, Kansas, puts common milkweed on its list of “rank” plants that harbor rats and insects, pose fire risks or blight neighborhoods.

Sometimes, city codes hinge on context.

Prairie Village lists common milkweed as a no-no, followed immediately by this caveat: “Native plants contained in a native garden, such as common milkweed and other pollinators (sic), would be considered a cultivated garden and not classified as a rank weed.”

City bans on milkweed are on the way out, the National Wildlife Federation says, a fact that it welcomes.

“They have been historically very, very common,” said Mary Phillips, head of the group’s Garden for Wildlife program that aims to integrate habitat into cities and suburbs. “Particularly in the central United States.”

She traces that history to the region’s agriculture. Milkweed can sicken livestock when they eat enough of it. Animals tend to steer clear of the toxic plants, but accidental poisonings do happen, particularly if milkweed infiltrates a hayfield and gets cut, dried and served up to livestock mixed into their hay.

Cities that no longer worry about keeping cattle safe have nevertheless retained the historical opposition to milkweed.

“The real trend is that those bans are being reversed,” Phillips said. “There’s a lot of pushback to get those overturned.”

In 2017, Illinois passed two state laws. One forced cities and counties to drop milkweed bans on common milkweed. The other declared milkweed the state wildflower.

Illinois cities such as Ottawa still have bans on their books, but the state law trumps it.

Asclepias syriaca, or common milkweed, is the species that cities most commonly target.

This species spreads not just through its seeds, but also through underground runners.

It takes work to control it in a flower garden, which might explain city bans where they still exist.

Bug chow

The reality is, many cities may not have anyone on staff who knows when or why milkweed was banned.

An Overland Park spokesperson said the city considers common milkweed a noxious weed because the Kansas Department of Agriculture does.

But the state agency refuted that. It says all Kansas milkweeds are “native and beneficial.”

“As far as we know it has never been listed as a noxious weed and there is no indication that there is any interest in listing it as noxious,” a Department of Agriculture spokeswoman said by email. “While it’s not healthy for cattle to eat, they generally avoid it.”

The center of the country is a significant flyway for migrating monarchs. And on their way north from Mexico each spring, they lay eggs.

Common milkweed was a key feature of Ginger Werp's front yard in past years. In September, Overland Park asked her to remove it. Ginger Werp

These famous travelers — by some counts, they were five times as numerous in the 1990s — can’t survive without milkweed.

A monarch butterfly can happily nectar on the blossoms of a wide variety of plant species, but its offspring eat just one thing: milkweed leaves. Without that, the females can’t produce descendants any more than humans can rear babies without breast milk or formula.

But milkweed has gotten harder to find.

“That entire (central) flyway was so heavy with milkweed many, many years ago,” Phillips said.

But today, as Monarch Watch at the University of Kansas notes, genetically modified corn and soybeans allow aggressive glyphosate herbicide (sold most commonly under the brand name Roundup) application that kills, among other things, milkweed. The plants have disappeared from tens of millions of acres of cropland.

Monarch Watch founder Chip Taylor and other researchers wrote in 2020 that restoring milkweed “is the conservation measure that will have the greatest impact” for helping the insects.

Monarch Watch distributes milkweed plants for habitat restoration, encourages the creation of pollinator gardens in cities and suburbs, and mails free plants to eager schools.

Common milkweed holds particular significance.

A 2018 study by researchers at Iowa State University and the USDA compared nine types of milkweed at 10 sites across Iowa from 2015 to 2017. They found Asclepias syriaca was one of two types where monarchs laid the most eggs.

Its decline makes some homeowners passionate about offering their yards as refuge by planting the long-maligned species, with its large leaves and spheres of pink blooms.

Mixed messages

As some governments see the plant in a new light, it can lead to conflicting messages, such as the discrepancy between Johnson County and Overland Park.

In 2014, Canada’s most populous province, Ontario, ended its battle against common milkweed. But as recently as last summer, a butterfly enthusiast there lost her milkweed-heavy pollinator garden to Toronto workers with weed wackers enforcing the city’s landscaping rules.

Lawrence lists common milkweed as a weed in its city code, but its parks and recreation department grows the plant in pollinator gardens.

“Our stance is that common milkweed in a properly maintained garden is perfectly acceptable,” a city spokeswoman said by email.

The city, which is part of a National Wildlife Federation pledge to support monarchs, says it can enforce its weed rule when properties aren’t properly tended.

But a citizen advisory board has asked the city commission to strike milkweed and other plants from Lawrence’s list of 56 weed species. It recommends using the state’s far shorter list.

“The list has kind of grown (over the decades) and nobody knows where a lot of this stuff came from,” said advisory board vice chairman Ben Sikes, a biologist. “Many of the species that are on there, we know are native species. Many of them are important for habitat or for food for native animals and insects.”

The Lawrence City Commission hasn’t acted on the recommendation.

#Milkweed #natural gardening #When a Kansas county wants people to plant milkweed but a city makes them rip it out #milkweed bans #kansas

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sir-squibbly · 2 months

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Big Bug Appreciation Post! (2/2)

Part two of my favorite local bugs. Let’s go!

30. Picture-Winged Fly

I think these guys are super neat. They don’t show up very often but they look really funky and I think that’s pretty cool.

31. Asiatic Oak Weevil

I found one of these in my bathroom. They’re absolutely tiny, but so adorable 🩶.

32. Drain Fly

Also called “moth flies.” They’re the cutest little menaces to public restrooms I’ve ever seen 🤎🤎.

33. Swamp Cicada

Surprisingly gorgeous for both a cicada and a swamp animal. There are actually multiple cicada species that are pretty, but this is just one of them. I guess the overall lesson here is to never underestimate the wonders of swamps and wetlands.

34. Luna Moth

I bet you already knew I was gonna mention these beauties at some point. Just like everywhere else they’re native to, they’re rare. On top of being rare, They're also primarily nocturnal, so if you ever see a Luna Moth in person, consider yourself lucky. I’ve seen two in person, and one even peed on my hand put of fear (I put her somewhere she’d feel safe after that). It smelled a lot like soap.

35. Bald-Faced Hornet

I love wasps, but I love black-and-white wasps even more. So I love getting to see Bald-Faced Hornets 🖤🤍.

36. Metallic Woodboring Beetle

I’ve encountered one of these. They move really weird, almost funky. Kinda like how you’d assume a super-advanced robot bug to move. Very cool. I like these guys.

37. Common Buckeye Butterfly

The butterflies look really cool, and I love all their false eyes. But if I’m being honest, the only reason I really bring these guys up is because of their caterpillars.

These little guys look so cool. And this is what I got to hold once. I love them. I hope they visit more often.

38. Monarch Butterfly

Monarchs rarely ever visit. I’ve only ever seen one in the garden, and that was either in the mid-to-late fall. But my mom got some milkweed recently, so fingers crossed!

And that’s all the bugs I have for you guys. I hope you enjoyed me talking about my thoughts on all these cool critters. 💪🔥💪💪🔥💪

#bugs #bugblr #butterflies #beetles #wasps #flies #moths #cicadas

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nohiketoosmall · 10 months

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Today at Buffalo Creek Wildlife Preserve

After a long day of counting plants for my masters class project, and my partner doing ecological restoration work, both outdoors, both very sweaty, we decided to kick back and relax after dinner by identifying as many plants at a wildlife preserve as we could.

Before that, here is a list of the animals we saw while looking at the plants:

-Canada Geese

-Mallard ducks

-Swallow (tree?)

-Sparrow (spp. unsure)

-Redwing blackbirds

-Goldfinches

-Snowy egrets

-Great Blue heron

-Sandhill cranes

-Ladybugs* (ladybug larva?)

-Japanese beetle*

-Stinkbug (spp.?)

-Milkweed bug :)

-Monarch butterfly

-Muskrat

-Deer

-Bunnies!

-Little mouse/vole guy

Here is a list of plants (I'll start with the plants I added to iNat and then the other ones from memory); we did not attempt to identify most grasses/sedges/trees, this is mostly prairie plants and is not a complete list of plants in the region. I will include a little "?" for plants that we couldn't 100% determine or were only recommended through iNaturalist, and an asterisk for plants that are not native.

-false sunflower

-wild bergamot

-sawtooth sunflower

-purple prairie clover

-butterfly milkweed

-stiff-leaved goldenrod

-white campion*

-prairie crab apple (?)

-common milkweed

-common yarrow

-hackberry

-cottonwood

-queen anne's lace*

-oxeye daisy

-annual fleabane*

-prairie dock

-wild white indigo

-illinois bundleflower

-red clover*

-virginia mountain mint

-american senna

-rough cocklebur (*?)

-joe-pye weeds

-orange day-lily*

-ironweed

-oak (various)

-white sweetclover*

-yellow sweetclover*

-compass plant

-gray-headed coneflower/yellow coneflower

-purple coneflower

-cut-leaved teasel*

-canada thistle*

-bull thistle*

-birdsfoot trefoil*

-crown vetch*

-reed canary*

-big bluestem

-chicory*

-burdock*

-curly dock*

-cattails (may or may not be native*)

-vervain

-cup plant

-ragweed

-cut-leaved coneflower

-giant ragweed

-dogwood

-dogsbane

-tall goldenrod

-grass-leaved goldenrod

-virginia strawberry

-elm (?)

-prairie rosinweed

-orchard grass (?)*

-timothy grass (?)*

-switchgrass

-redtop

It was nice and late in the afternoon, cloudy, and there was rain forecasted but it didn't come until we were leaving (and even then it was barely drizzling). Overall we saw a lot of plants and animals! :)

#nature #wildlife #plants #informal plant survey #i guess lol #inaturalist

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rjalker · 2 years

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"You can't solve climate change as an indivual" is true, but that does not mean you can't do anything to help your local ecosystem.

Find out what plants grow native to your area. iNaturalist.org is a great resource for that. Grow native plants, however the heck you can manage it. It doesn't have to be in the ground. If you can get a five gallon bucket and stab or drill some holes in the bottom and can get potting soil, you can grow a plant in that five gallon bucket.

Put some leaves or twigs or grass clippings on the bottom to keep the dirt from fallout out the holes, add the dirt, then your plant or the seed. If you have it, you can add mulch once your seeds germinate, just make sure not to cover them. If it's a bigger plant already, you can mulch whenever you want.

Find out what butterflies are native to your area. Find out what host plants they use, and you can grow one of their host plants and watch the caterpillars grow up. If monarch butterflies visit your area, find out what species of milkweed are native to your area, and grow one of them! If you put a tomato cage around the plant, it will give the caterpillars something to climb on when they're ready to form a chrysalis :)

Even just one native plant can and will make a difference.

When we lived in Pennsylvanina, one common milkweed seed found its way into the yard and started growing. Once I realized what it was, I made sure no one would pull it up, and let it grow.

This single common milkweed plant attracted:

Large Milkweed bugs

Red Milkweed beetles

Monarch butterflies

Brown-belted bumblebees

Common eastern bumblebees

Eastern carpenter bees

Western honey bees (not native, but still counts)

Marginated Leatherwing beetles

Common buckeye butterflies

Too many wasp species to count

Too many fly species to count

And these are just the species that I could get pictures of and identify, and doesn't even mention the numbers of each of them!

You want to help your local ecosystem? You want to save the bees and other native pollinators?

Figure out what plants are native to your area, and grow them.

(Don't just go to the store and grab a packet of "wildflower mix" because nine times out of ten they'll be filled with non native species. Always check for the scientific names before buying something, because stores and nurseries tend to change the name to make something more desirable to sellers)

#wildlife #climate change #global warming #native plants #iNaturalist

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woozymitts · 2 years

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Red Milkweed Beetle (Tetraopes tetrophthalmus) European Paper Wasp (Polistes dominula) Common Eastern Firefly (Photinus pyralis)

Some cool buggies from the yard! We’ve got tons of milkweed growing and the bugs are obsessed with it. Haven’t found any caterpillars yet though, but we’ve seen a few monarchs.

Also it’s SO funny seeing people talk about how awful and mean and aggressive wasps are but I can literally open the old wood grill in my yard and shove my macro lens into their nest and the most they ever do is threat posture and stare at me.

#Long Post #Wildlife Photography #Not Pets #Invertebrates #Red Milkweed Beetle #European Paper Wasp #Common Eastern Firefly

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jonnysinsectcatalogue · 1 year

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Large Milkweed Bug - Oncopeltus fasciatus

Though orange-colored rather than red and they lack the “heart-shaped” patterns that their Smaller relatives have, I wish I’d have remembered this set of images for a Valentines post. Insect mating pairs always make for a fun (and fitting) showcase for the day of loving, and yet somehow these were missed. Looking at them more closely, the images I’ve gathered here are very similar to each other, so maybe the set isn’t so dynamic. Hopefully the picture of the nymphs that various instars (Picture 6) can break up the monotony and provide insight into the life cycle of this brightly-colored Seed Bug. The deep red of the youngest nymphs gives way to orange in later instars and a black pattern gradually begins to appear. The latter will be kept throughout the life of the adult and the red color manifests itself in another place: the face. It’s genuinely amazing how the colors of the insect are organized and distributed as one instar becomes another and milkweed juices and seeds are consumed. Like the more familiar and more glamorous milkweed lover, the Monarch Butterfly, their vibrant orange coloration is a result of their diet and warns would-be predators that they are distasteful and shouldn’t be eaten.

Come to think of it, their color scheme is very similar, so there could be many common factors in milkweed toxin integration to their bodies despite the different parts of the plant that are consumed (leaves vs. seeds and plant juices). Having said that, unlike Monarch Caterpillars which can start feeding immediately after hatching, the Milkweed Bug nymphs will have to work harder to get the best nutrition they can. Upon hatching, their rostrums are too short to pierce through the milkweed pods to feast on the seeds within. Furthermore, if they hatch too early they’ll need to rely on the milkweed’s buds for nutrition, and while suitable it’s not as fulfilling as the seeds are. As such, these seed feeders will look for any opportunity to breach the seed pods for the prizes inside. If a pod is already open, so much the better, but if not there are thin spots and weak points that can be jabbed. If the nymphs can survive to instar 4, no more feeding problems will be had, and adults can feed however they please.

Pictures were taken on July 18 and October 24, 2020 with a Google Pixel 4. For more information, I recommend checking out this article by Carol Pearson Ralph on how Large Milkweed Bugs and milkweed plants interact with each other and regulate each other to a degree.

#jonny’s insect catalogue #ontario insect #large milkweed bug #seed bug #hemiptera #heteroptera #true bug #insect #mating pair #toronto #july2020 #october2020 #2020 #entomology #nature #invertebrates

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greysexcellent · 2 years

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Cover plants sprayed with insecticides and pesticides

#Cover plants sprayed with insecticides and pesticides driver

#Cover plants sprayed with insecticides and pesticides free

And toxins in many pesticides kill beneficial insects as well as pests. Apart from the dangers of synthetic insecticides, many plant bugs develop resistance to these chemicals. Many manufactured pesticides contain potentially dangerous chemicals that can affect your health. Why should you use neem oil on plants? Spraying plants with neem oil is a better alternative to using synthetic pesticides. The beauty of neem oil for plants is that it’s easy to use, not toxic, and highly effective. Also, spraying neem oil on leaves can reduce foliar fungal infections to keep your plants looking healthy and thriving. A neem oil spray can help control and eradicate common houseplant pests. Neem oil is a natural plant insecticide and fungicide. The use of insecticidal soaps or horticultural oils can be used to control unwanted insects, but keep in mind that this treatment may harm or kill any beneficial insects present at the time of application, even if the plant is not in bloom.Email Pinterest Facebook Twitter Linkedin If you must treat, do not use neonics or other systemic insecticides, and avoid spraying when plants are in bloom, when pollinators are most drawn to them. As you maintain pollinator habitat on your property, do not use insecticides on your plants. Scenario 3: You’re maintaining pollinator habitat on your property.

#Cover plants sprayed with insecticides and pesticides free

Be wise about purchasing plants, ask the appropriate questions, build a relationship with producers you trust, and encourage your community to support those producers you know are growing/selling neonicotinoid free plants. Express the importance of pesticide free plants to help plant producers understand the demand for pollinator-friendly plants in the marketplace. Ask if they were treated with any pesticides and if so, which ones. Even if plants are labeled as “Pollinator Plants” it is best to ask the grower or distributor you are purchasing from about the history of the plants. Sometimes plants are labeled as neonicotinoid- or pesticide-free, but not always. Scenario 2: You’re planning to purchase milkweed and other wildflowers to support pollinators. However, this is an active area of research and later findings might lead to changes in this recommendation. By the next year, it is unlikely that there will be enough remaining pesticide residue to pose a problem to caterpillars. Alternatively, you could cover/tent plants for a year so that monarchs do not use them. For caterpillar host plants like milkweed suspected of being treated, the safest option for would be to properly dispose of the plant and find sources you know are pesticide-free to replace them. Neonicotinoid levels will diminish in the plant over time. For nectar plants, remove flowers for the first couple of years so that pollinators are not attracted to blooms. If you know or are suspicious that recently purchased plants were treated, you have a couple options.

#Cover plants sprayed with insecticides and pesticides driver

Consumer demand is a critical driver of change in a business setting. If they were treated, express your desire for them to sell pesticide-free plants. First of all, contact the store to ask if they have been treated. Scenario 1: You have already purchased plants, but you suspect or don’t know if they were treated. There are several steps that you can take as a consumer to reduce pollinator exposure to neonicotinoids and other pesticides: When creating pollinator habitat it is important to minimize pollinator exposure to chemicals that have the potential to cause harm. What should I do if plants that I've purchased were treated with neonicotinoids or other pesticides? How should I avoid purchasing treated plants in the future?

#Cover plants sprayed with insecticides and pesticides

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theplantgirl · 2 years

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pests won't rest

Male Green Birdwing (Ornithoptera priamus)

Pest control is one of the more challenging aspects of horticulture, especially when done ecologically responsibly. As discussed in my first pest control post, the museum tries to use the least amount of pesticides and insecticides possible.

Milkweed bugs swarming an Aquatic Milkweed (Asclepias perennis).

The primary pest control method within the rainforest conservatory is through beneficial insects. Mealybugs are the most significant culprit and one of the more challenging to treat. If an infestation is caught fast enough, it can be treated with isopropyl alcohol. The alcohol essentially melts the bugs, and then they can be sprayed off with water. This process may be repeated a few times before the infestation is completely eradicated.

Zamia spp. recovering after a heavy scale and mealy bug infestation.

Scale is another very common pest. The plant above had a particularly nasty scale and mealy bug infestation. To treat this fragile plant, I slowly removed the pests using a toothbrush and soapy water. After a few weeks of recovery, the plant quickly grew two new fronds. The only remaining damage is some scarring on the undersides of the leaves.

Ladybug eating aphids off of milkweed.

The preferred way to deal with pests is through beneficial insects. Twice throughout the summer, we released a few hundred Cryptolamus inside the conservatory. These beneficial insects will target mealybugs, and once released, they get to work quickly. In the greenhouses, we allow beneficials to come naturally. Ladybugs and syrphid flies are the most common and easily recognizable beneficials. On occasion, we may use insecticides within the greenhouse. This is not ideal, but not as difficult to do as in the rainforest. Because of the butterflies in the conservatory, pesticides need to target pests but are ineffective on the butterflies and other beneficial soft-bodied bugs, like earthworms.

Two Blue Porterweeds (Stachytarpheta jamaicensis) suffering from a heavy mealy bug infestation.

As you can tell from the pictures above, pests can quickly kill a plant. These Porterweeds were happy and healthy the night before this picture was taken. The mealybugs reproduced quickly and killed these plants. These plants were treated with isopropyl; however, this proved ineffective due to the severity of the infestation.

Lady bug larvae feeding on aphids on milkweed.

Freshly painted Pentas graffiti in the meadow of the rainforest.

Unfortunately, there is no way to save a plant, and the entire plant must be removed to prevent the further spread of the pests. Papaya trees are magnets for pests, and though the plant itself was surviving, the tree had to be removed for the health of the surrounding plants. The Blue Porterweeds pictured above had to be removed as well because there was no way to rehabilitate the plants. Once removed, we replanted with healthier, more resistant plants. The Pentas pictured above were planted because of their pest resistance. Pest control can be difficult, but learning how to do so in an ecologically responsible way is vital to protect beneficial insects and soil health.

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