sowing seeds

[David Calhoun]

I did read and print up the info on growing milkweed,vernalization and all that, but I wondered
how much success I might have if I just took my seeds off of my plants now(they look brown when I remove them from the pods) and just went around and stuck the seeds 0.25" under the soil.(Without doing any special treatment to the seeds, in other words, planted them about the way that mother nature does it)? David

[Mona Miller]

You could try it. I just learned that you don't have to give swamp milkweed a cold treatment.

[NickiM]

That's exactly what I did with my seeds last fall, and I now have several healthy, albeit small, milkweed plants. I'm going to plant a lot more this fall, since I've noticed the cats really prefer the common milkweed, when given a choice. Although, most of the cats I've found were on the swamp milkweed--maybe because it's a bigger plant.

[Mona Miller]

The Monarchs will lay on very small plants. I think their preferences change from year to year. They usually will choose nice tender plants for their offspring.

[lola]

I got my seeds through livemonarch.com. they were free. they came with instructions, but i didnt see anything about a cold treatment? (the milkweed seeds arent sprouting) Should i have given them a cold treatment. NOTHING I PLANT(MARIGOLDS,ASTERS,PERENIALS) WILL GROW!!!!!! EVEN THE MARIGOLDS WONT GROW!!! IM SOOOO FRUSTRATED. I USUALLY HAVE A GREEN THUMB!!!

[Mona Miller]

The seeds that Live Monarch gives away are tropical milkweed seeds. They do not need a cold treatment, but you can soak them in water for a day. They should germinate within a week to 10 days. If they do not germinate, then they are not viable (old seed).

I recommend Monarch Watch's Waystation Seed kits:

http://shop.monarchwatch.org/product.as ... ening(base)&p=125522(base)
Product Description
To create a habitat for monarchs, you need to provide milkweeds for the larvae, nectar plants for the adults, and sufficient vegetation to provide shelter for the larvae, pupae and adults.

This Monarch Waystation Seed Kit is designed to enable you to create a habitat suitable for monarchs within the context of a traditional garden. Included are 12 varieties of nectar and monarch host plants (individual packets of approximately 20-30 seeds) and a detailed "Creating a Monarch Waystation" guide.

The Monarch Waystation Seed Kit includes seed packets of six milkweeds and six general nectar plants. Please note that substitutions may be made due to current seed availability.

Milkweed:
Butterfly Weed (Asclepias tuberosa)
Showy Milkweed (Asclepias speciosa)
Common Milkweed (Asclepias syriaca)
Swamp Milkweed (Asclepias incarnata subsp. incarnata)
Swamp Milkweed (Asclepias incarnata subsp. pulchra)
Tropical Milkweed (Asclepias curassavica)

General Nectar Plants:
Joe Pye Weed (Eupatorium purpureum)
Tithonia Torch, Mexican Sunflower (Tithonia)
Purple Coneflower (Echinacea purpurea)
Zinnia, Dahlia Mix (Zinnia elegans)
Purple Horse Mint (Monarda citriodora)
Indian Blanket (Gaillardia pulchella)
Partridge Pea (Cassia fasciculata)

Seeds packed in 2009.

For more information about Monarch Watch's Monarch Waystation Program please visit www.monarchwatch.org/waystations