Dear Wigleaf,

Over the summer I acquired plants to install a pollinator garden. I uprooted two sickly azaleas and a dead mini-spruce tree, as well as a patch of very burnt grass my dog had urinated on. The garden contains three varieties of milkweed/butterfly weed (Asclepias tuberosa, incarnata, and syriaca), two varieties of Joe-Pye weed (Eutrochium purpureum), cone flowers (Echinacea), and a butterfly bush (Buddleia). Monarch butterflies cannot survive without milkweed, and their population has declined by ~97%. Butterflies are attracted to red, orange, yellow, pink, and purple blossoms. While I was digging plant holes, my ten-pound Pomeranian found a milkweed root and decided to blithely chomp on it. I noticed instantly, thankfully, and preceded to implement the necessary health precautions. Milkweed is poisonous. The roots are less toxic than the leaves, but the latex alkaloid is lethal even to monarchs when not consumed in the right amount. They use latex to avoid predation from birds and other animals. Insects where I live, and everywhere, are experiencing an insect apocalypse. It sounds funny, but it's not. Small animals like birds, amphibians, and reptiles depend on insects, and as a consequence their populations are also declining at alarming rates. The use of pesticides, chemicals, light pollution, and various forms of human activity are to blame. We can plant species that promote biodiversity, advocate, and play a role in creating refuge. I recommend the book Nature's Best Hope by Douglas Tallamy for more on this subject.

Sincerely,

Gabrielle