Butterflies are free - raising butterflies in Florida, Monarch butterflies & Milkweeds

This is more of an inspirational rather than an informational video; raising butterflies is a very extensive topic, and you learn a lot as you go; it can be frustrating at times but with perseverance and proper pesticide-free plants your garden will soon swarm with pollinators. It's quite different in South Florida from the rest of the country because our monarchs don't migrate, and we have 2 monarch "seasons" a year. This video explains how to start your own butterfly colony fast for "lazy gardeners" like us.
Out of all butterflies here in South Florida, Monarchs, Queens and Giant Swallowtails stand out because of their size, bright colors and food preferences. While Giant swallowtail larvae (caterpillars) feed on pretty much any plant in the Citrus family (curry tree is also a citrus!), monarchs sustain mostly by milkweeds.
Establishing milkweeds, especially smaller native milkweeds, isn't an easy job but having a Giant milkweed (Calotropis gigantea) might help tremendously, along with growing native milkweeds from seed and protecting them - well, from monarchs! - until they get established. A great resource for milkweed info is Monarch Watch project, you can also create a Monarch Waystation in your garden and support monarch conservation/preservation efforts: www.monarchwatch.org/ - they also send a mixture of several varieties of milkweed seeds for free if you are involved in native habitat restoration or an educational project. For a quick and concise guide on growing milkweeds and raising monarchs, visit www.monarchwatch.org/milkweed...
To learn more about our garden and non-profit, visit www.oshobodhisattva.org and watch videos in our GARDEN playlist.
There are many different varieties of beautiful butterflies, just plant their host plants and make sure they're pesticide- and herbicide-free.
Why we want to raise monarchs: flawildflowers.org/monarch-mi...
Some of native pollinators and their host and nectar plants:
Queen - flawildflowers.org/know-your-...
Zebra longwing (our state butterfly) - flawildflowers.org/know-your-...
White peacock - flawildflowers.org/know-your-...
Ceraunus blue - flawildflowers.org/know-your-...
Cuckoo bee - flawildflowers.org/know-your-...
Surf through this web site, it has oceans of information on different native plants and pollinators you want in your garden.
Music credit: Edward Albert sings Butterflies Are Free in the eponymous movie, 1972

[@raulzaldivar7828]

Thank you for helping the butterflies, I raised over 200 last year and it's a wonderful feeling.

[@VirginiaFruitGrower]

Very cool that you all are raising butterflies 🦋😊.

[@growpuravida]

yep they add another dimension to the garden:)

[@itziahurtado]

Hi...where did u purchase your tree? I would love one... or is it better to start from seed?

[@growpuravida]

They are available at local nurseries, I see them every now and again. were are you located? As for seeds, I was never able to get a single pod, in monarch groups people said that you need two unrelated plants (not a clone) to produce seeds. it's usually propagated by cuttings.

[@itziahurtado]

Located.in st. lucie.county.....I will keep trying to find