National Pollinator Week is June 19 – 25, and to mark the occasion, the National Wildlife Federation is hosting its third annual Butterfly Heroes campaign. The program aims to protect and preserve America’s declining monarch butterfly population by providing kids and families with tools and inspiration.
Last spring, as part of the program, Daisy and Brownie Girl Scouts teamed up with Nancy Naeve and the Lost Creek Limited District Parks to create a habitat for attracting and retaining monarchs.
“We researched what colorful, nectar producing plants would be best in Austin,” says Naeve. “We even visited local, organic nursery Natural Gardener to view the butterfly garden they have created on their grounds. Then we got together on a Saturday morning and planted the butterfly attracting plants.”
Learn more about the Butterfly Heroes program by clicking here. If you share a photo of your planting and outdoor activity by September 30, 2017, you’ll be entered into a Grand Prize sweepstakes to win a family trip for four to the 2018 Epcot International Flower & Garden Festival at the Walt Disney World in Orlando.
Naeve says the most important things she and the Girl Scouts learned about attracting butterflies are to plant flowering plants that appeal to pollinators, to plant in a sunny spot because butterflies like the warmth of sunshine and to avoid using pesticides and insecticides anywhere near your butterfly garden.
