Through Tue 11/15
It’s that time of year again for those of you who want to help preserve the monarch butterfly population to start collecting ripe seed pods from the Common Milkwood that supports them throughout their life cycle. The plant not only supports monarchs but other pollinator species as well & its disappearance has been linked to diminished populations of these essential species.
Cuyahoga Soil & Water Conservation District (SWCD) joins other Ohio soil and water conservation districts to take the pods through Tuesday November 15 t be processed by Ohio Pollinator Habitat Initiative (OPHI) to expand the butterflies’ habitat.
Seed pods should be picked when they are dry and gray or brown in color and the seam should pop under gentle pressure. Store them in a paper rather than plastic bag to avoid moisture collection and store the bags in a dry place. Please mark your bags with the county they were picked in. Visit our website for more information about collecting pods.
Seed pods can be dropped off at the Cuyahoga SWCD office (3311 Perkins Avenue, Suite 100, in Cleveland) anytime; there’s a collection bin on the west side of the building by the garage door. Please mark bags with the country in which they were collected. For more information go to cuyahogaswcd/common-milkweed-pod-collection.