Want to help conserve monarch butterflies? Plant some free milkweed in your yard

The monarch butterfly is facing an uncertain future: Populations have been slowly declining for years, shrinking by as much as 90% due to human development.

Last winter’s count of overwintering monarch butterflies was the second-lowest since volunteers and scientists started counting the picturesque insects, according to the Xerxes Society. The lowest count ever observed was in 2020, with fewer than 2,000 butterflies recorded.

But there’s a way to help: You can plant more milkweed, the only food monarch caterpillars can eat. The Santa Monica Mountains Fund is partnering with the L.A. Parks Foundation for a months-long milkweed giveaway in the San Fernando Valley to get you started.

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About the giveaway

Both organizations have an extensive history with growing milkweed. The L.A. Parks Foundation keeps a milkweed nursery in Griffith Park, and the Santa Monica Mountains Fund’s efforts to plant milkweed picked up after the Woolsey Fire disrupted the area’s natural environment.

Santa Monica Mountains Fund executive director Deanna Armbruster told LAist the goal was to give away 10,000 milkweed plants by the end of October. The nonprofit currently is at about 6,000, so they’re looking for lots more people to pick up some plants in the coming weeks.

The giveaways are happening across the San Fernando Valley, including Reseda, Panorama City, and Encino. Crystal Tsoi, deputy director of the L.A. Parks Foundation, said that’s on purpose because of the Valley’s concretized environment with little green space.

“ In other areas of the city, the access to milkweed is a little bit easier,” she said.

Another benefit of getting your milkweed from this giveaway: The plants are native to Southern California, so you can be certain the butterflies stopping by your garden are getting the right food. That’s essential, according to Armbruster, because non-native milkweed plants can disrupt monarchs’ migration cycles. (If you do get yours from a store, make sure to check they’re native to best support the monarchs.)

Having milkweed plants in places like residential gardens is essential, Armbruster said, since the offspring of migrating monarch butterflies will need food no matter if they decide to travel over natural environments in the Santa Monica Mountains or over urban environments.

The giveaways are happening all over the San Fernando Valley on Saturdays and Sundays this month. For a full list and to register to reserve your plant, see here.

What to expect after you plant milkweed

The milkweed being given away won’t be quite mature yet — it was planted this spring and still needs about a year or so before it can be a suitable food source.

To that end, it’s recommended that you cover the plants while they grow to maturity — caterpillars still will eat young milkweed, even though they’re a better food source when they’re able to mature.

The plants come in packs of six, Armbruster said. Having several milkweed plants close to each other helps caterpillars find food sources, since they can very quickly eat through the leaves on one plant.

It’s also important to get the plants in the ground before the winter starts so they can start to grow into their new environment.

If you’re new to growing milkweed, Armbruster warned that your plants will look like they’re dying over the winter. Don’t worry — it’s just a natural feature of the plants, which hibernate every winter.

Once you do uncover the plants next year, that’s when you can prepare for butterflies and caterpillars. Tsoi said the butterflies likely will take note of the plants and start stopping by within a week or two.

The Santa Monica Mountains Fund has lots more tips and tricks for growing milkweed.

How to support the organizations

This giveaway is made possible via a grant from L.A. County Supervisor Lindsay Horvath. But the Santa Monica Mountains Fund, which is a nonprofit that partners with the National Park Service and California State Parks, said the funding won’t last past this giveaway. They’re looking for more funding to continue the giveaway through the spring.

To support the organization, you can donate or volunteer.

L.A. Parks Foundation also has details for how to donate and get involved on its website.