The conversation about how private working lands can help monarchs and pollinators is ongoing and lively. Check here often, as Farmers for Monarchs aims to be a perennial resource for farmers and landowners interested in planting and enhancing monarch habitat.
Please note that not all posts are authored by Farmers for Monarchs – a Keystone Collaborative, which is facilitated by Keystone Policy Center. For more information, please contact Matt Mulica.
Hope Grows with Eastern Monarch Population Holding Steady
Posted onIn a report released this week from the World Wildlife Fund Mexico (WWF), scientists determined monarchs occupied 2.84 hectares in December 2021, a modest increase from the 2.10 hectares occupied in December 2020. The report notes the 35% increase in monarch butterfly overwintering population numbers between 2020 and 2021 gives some reason for hope given […]
‘No Mow May’ Makes Supporting Pollinators Effortless
Posted onOne of the many requests the world makes to farmers and other land managers is restoring pollinator populations by implementing pollinator-friendly conservation practices on their lands. This month, we share a conservation principle that we hope lightens the burden on farm managers: simply stop mowing, at least during the month of May. Last year, we […]
Minnesota Farmer and Beekeeper Maximizes Acreage for Pollinators
Posted onThe monarchs coming out of overwintering in Mexico have reached their breeding grounds in the southern U.S. and are nearing the end of life. Their offspring, the first generation of 2022 will soon continue the northward migration. Insect populations fluctuate with annual weather patterns and timing. Success for monarchs relies on well-timed and abundant resources, […]
Stewardship Practices for Planting Treated Seeds
Posted onThere are a host of stewardship practices deployed by farmers throughout the year that boost crop health and yield while also protecting monarchs and other pollinators. One of those practices that bears particular attention during planting season is the proper management of treated seeds. The Guide to Seed Treatment Stewardship provides guidelines for managing treated […]
Western Monarch Populations Rally, Total Nearly 250,000 in 2021
Posted onThe western monarch population saw an extraordinary rebound in 2021, according to overwintering count totals recently released by the Xerces Society. The 2021 Western Monarch Thanksgiving Count tallied 247,237 monarchs, a significant increase from the previous year’s count, which came in at just under 2,000. The 2021 count is the highest tally since 2016 and […]
General Conservation Reserve Program Signup Opens Today
Posted onSignup for the 2022 General Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) opens today, Jan. 31, and will run to March 11, 2022, according to a recent announcement from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). The Grassland CRP signup will run from April 4 to May 13, 2022. The Continuous CRP Signup remains ongoing. In 2021, USDA announced […]
Early Sightings Fuel Optimism for Western Monarch Rebound
Posted onThe official 2021 western monarch tally will not be known until early 2022 but early observations indicate a promising rebound for these monarch populations. “Nature has given us a second chance,” Emma Pelton, a biologist with the Xerces Society, told NPR last month. Farmers for Monarchs detailed earlier this year the alarmingly low 2020 western […]
Dormant Seeding: An Effective and Economical Approach to Establishing Pollinator Habitat
Posted onThroughout the temperate world, Mother Nature’s knack for nurturing and sustaining the life cycle of plants is incomparable. Seasonally, wildflowers and other seed-producing plants mature and spread their seed. At that point, in places that experience winter-like conditions and natural freeze and thaw cycles, the seed works its way into the soil. The spring thaw […]
Maintaining Pollinator Habitat is Just as Important as Planting It
Posted onFarmers for Monarchs has detailed several resources for farmers and landowners looking to establish and maintain monarch and pollinator habitat on their lands—we’ve recently highlighted a new step-by-step guide to help producers plant for pollinators. But what about those landowners who have already established pollinator habitat? How should they evaluate and maintain habitat success? Ongoing […]
Migrating Monarchs Stop for Food at Virginia Drive-thru
Posted onThe migratory generation of monarchs that departs for their overwintering grounds each fall relies on late season wildflowers to fuel their flight. While sitting at a fast food drive thru in Prince William County, Virginia, earlier this month, one of our Farmers for Monarchs members spotted dozens of migrating monarchs refueling on the nectar of […]