The National Monarch Dome
The National Monarch Dome
Why Your Participation is Essential
In addition to helping reverse the tragic population loss, many Monarchs have been displaced from their original migration routes due to habitat loss, climate change, and various other human activities; with enough participation by home and business owners, we can restore many of these routes and create new ones!
Because changing weather patterns can change their migration routes every year, the National Monarch Dome will provide the indomitable fortress needed to ensure they can thrive no matter what. The selected flowers also benefit the non-migrating summer broods of Monarchs plus many other types of pollinators so your efforts will be rewarded throughout the seasons.
The Super-Star Powers of these Flowers
Because there are so few Monarchs left, each support pillar must include at least one super-attractor to give you the best chance for them to find and utilize it; and include at least 1-2 native milkweeds as these are the ONLY host plants that they can lay their eggs on.
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Imagine the sadness that Mom Monarchs must feel when they cannot find the milkweed required to have their children - we must help them so that she will instead feel the wonderful joy of fulfilling her final mission in life!
The Super-Star Selections for Your Landscape
Meadow Blazing Star (Liatris ligulistylis) / Savanah Blazing Star (Liatris scariosa)
these stunning 3-6 feet tall towering beauties emits a hormone that Monarchs can detect from afar- providing an extraordinary natural beacon that will give you the best chance for them to find and utilize your support pillar. They will grow in most locations that are sunny and well-draining, in at least zones 3 through 8 which covers most of the contiguous USA. The ideal nectar-source flowers anywhere that Monarchs are feeding during their ~July-September bloom period!
Blue Fortune Hyssop (Agastache foeniculum)
this superior specimen will attract and feed monarchs throughout the heat of Summer and into the Fall. Monarchs (and a huge variety of other pollinators) find this plant to be completely irresistible and will feed on its prolific blooms and prodigious growth for an incredible 4 months (~July – October), making it the most robust selection to ensure nectar availability in almost any suitable growing location (sunny and well-drained) throughout the USA (hardy in Zones 3 – 8).
Orange Butterfly Milkweed (Asclepias tuberosa)
this is the perfect milkweed choice for sunny and well-drained / drier soil locations. This plant provides all the required benefits that monarchs need from milkweed as a host-plant to lay their eggs, and looks fabulous doing so with its extraordinary orange blooms that also provide June-August nectar. Incredible growing region tolerance of Zones 3-10 (all of the contiguous USA) and well-suited to handle increasing severity and frequency of droughts.
Swamp Milkweed (Asclepias incarnata)
milkweeds are 100% required for Monarchs because their young caterpillars evolved to eat only milkweed -it builds up a toxin in their bodies that is harmless to them but harmful to birds and other species- the beautiful orange color of Monarchs serves as a warning to would-be predators! Swamp milkweed is very adaptable though thrives best in a consistently-moist area in your landscape with 2-8 hours of sun per day, anywhere in Zones 3-9. Monarchs and many other butterflies enjoy its nectar too during its early to mid-summer bloom. Like all milkweeds, it is best to keep this in an area that pets won’t get to because of its mildly toxic nature if eaten in large quantities.
Dense Blazing Star (Liatris spicata)
This flower also emits a hormone that butterflies can detect from a distance- though the evolutionary attraction is not as potent between Monarchs and Dense Blazing Star as it is with Meadow/Savanah Blazing Star, having the Dense Star provides an earlier bloom period (~June-July) to attract and feed earlier visiting Monarchs, and is a perfect supplement to Meadow/Savanah Star's July-September bloom. When they are in peak-bloom, you are likely to see Monarchs spending ~50% or more of their time feeding on Dense Blazing Star, and ~80-90% of their time on Meadow/Savanah Blazing Star.
Purple Coneflower (Echinacea purpurea)
Purple Coneflower is an excellent supplemental selection particularly in the northern-half of the USA- their long bloom period from late Spring through late Summer is a favored source of nectar for the Summer broods of Monarchs and the last generation in August before they begin their long migration. The pure strain and any of the cultivated versions that retain pinkish / light purple hue petals with orange/chocolate colored centers work well in our experience, (outstanding selections include Ruby Star, Magnus, PowWow, and Sombrero Rosada). Grows in Zones 3-8 and performs best in sunny, reasonably well-drained locations
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Goldenrods (Solidago sp.)
For those of you in the Southern half of the USA, late-bloomers like Goldenrod will help provide the needed nectar energy as they migrate through in September and October. Their striking yellow blooms attract and feed Monarchs and many other pollinators when little else may be in bloom. Excellent selections include Seaside Goldenrod (Solidago sempervirens) for Coastal areas in Zones 3-8, Sweet Goldenrod (Solidago odora) is the most versatile for a wide range of soil, sun, and heat conditions in Zones 4-9, and for moist areas with part-shade Wrinkeleaf Goldenrod (Solidago rugosa including "Fireworks") is a great selection for Zones 4-8.
Asters (Symphyotrichum sp.)
Asters are another excellent selection for those of you in the Southern half of the USA; their late blooms (September ~ November) will specifically help the migrating Monarchs passing through on their way to the mountains of Mexico. Aromatic Asters (S. oblongifolium) have superior versatility for most any reasonably well-draining soil (including salt-tolerance in Coastal areas) in Zones 3-8 - "October Skies" features unbelievably prolific and beautiful periwinkle-blue blooms. For moister areas and heavier soils, New England Asters (S. novae-angliae) are a great choice- the pure-strain may need staking with its tall height, though there are excellent more compact cultivars including "Purple Dome" and "Vibrant Dome" available; Zones 4-8.
The Miracles of the Monarch Migration and Life Cycle that Each Pillar of the Dome will Support
1. The autumn migration, that starts around August in the Northern USA / Canada. This brood will travel on an incredible 1,000 to 3,000 mile journey to the mountains of Mexico (east of the Rocky Mountains) and to the coast of California (west of the Rocky Mountains). Everyone’s support pillar throughout the USA will help provide the food-nectar energy they need to reach their destination
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2. In the Spring, this brood heads back North and MUST find milkweed in the southern parts of the USA on which to lay their eggs. How incredibly sad to have made this long journey only to be the last of their generation because mom monarchs cannot find any milkweed to lay their eggs. We have the power to provide the joy she deserves to fulfill her final mission in life- those of you in the southern half of the USA please take note of how important it is for you to have milkweed in your support pillars to enable this miraculous legacy to live on!
3. The brood born on this milkweed in the southern USA will then travel North; there will be around 3-4 additional broods (generations) born throughout the summer, each of which lives only 4-5 weeks. Without milkweed, these broods will be the last of their generation because the parents have nothing to lay their eggs on. And just as our children have the best chance of survival when we as parents and they as developing youth have a balanced diet and are healthy, so too is it with each generation of monarchs – the selected flowers in your support pillars throughout the Monarch Dome in the northern half of the USA will help do exactly that throughout the summer- ultimately leading to the healthiest and highest possible population of monarchs born in August that will travel the incredible 1,000-3,000 mile journey and live for 8-9 months to repeat one of Nature’s most amazing and delicate lifecycles
Plant your individual support pillar for the
National Monarch Dome and create a legacy of human compassion united in saving our beloved monarchs!
