New Milkweed Propagation Manual Available

Queen butterfly caterpillar on Longleaf Milkweed (Asclepias longifolia). Photo by Mary Keim.

The Xerces Society announces the release of Milkweeds: A Conservation Practitioner’s Guide, a first-of-its kind manual on large-scale milkweed seed production, nursery propagation, and field restoration of the plants. The information in this comprehensive publication was gained firsthand through our Project Milkweed, gathered from interviews with native plant nurseries and seed producers, and synthesized from scientific literature.
 
This guide provides conservation professionals with information about optimiz­ing milkweed seed production methods, offers guidance on incorporating milkweeds into restoration and revegetation efforts, and highlights milkweeds’ unique characteristics and value to wildlife. Native seed producers, restoration practitioners, land managers, monarch conservationists, gardeners, and landowners will all find this guide valuable.
 
You can download the guide as a PDF here: http://www.xerces.org/milkweeds-a-conservation-practitioners-guide/.
 
Featured topics include:

• Milkweeds’ value to monarch butterflies, pollinators, and other beneficial insects;
• Pollination ecology;
• Tips for collecting foundation germplasm;
• Methods for germinating seed and producing transplants;
• Detailed guidelines for large-scale milkweed seed production, from field establishment through seed cleaning;
• In-depth profiles of milkweed specialist insects;
• Guidance on identifying and managing milkweed diseases;
• Assessment of milkweed seed availability on a regional basis;
• Opportunities to include milkweeds in monarch and pollinator habitat restoration efforts; and
• Regional recommendations of priority species for use in restoration.

 
FANN has been pleased to collaborate with the Xerces Society and Jaret Daniels at University of Florida and contribute to the increased interest in milkweed propagation and planting for Monarch habitat conservation. The Monarch butterfly has been identified as a “gateway insect,” drawing in the general public and making them more generally aware of insects, their roles in the ecosystem and their habitat needs (native plants!).

Additional information may be available from:
Brianna Borders, Plant Ecologist
The Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation
628 NE Broadway Suite 200, Portland, OR, 97232 USA
brianna@xerces.org
Tel: (503) 232-6639, ext. 103
Toll free: 1-855-232-6639, ext. 103
Fax: (503) 233-6794

Find all the information you need to conserve pollinator habitat at: www.xerces.org/pollinator-resource-center/
 
The Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation is an international nonprofit organization that protects wildlife through the conservation of invertebrates and their habitat.
 
FANN received this information from:
native-plants mailing list
native-plants@lists.plantconservation.org
http://lists.plantconservation.org/mailman/listinfo/native-plants_lists.plantconservation.org