We have inadvertently discovered how to create a monarch nursery: mow an overgrown field that has some established milkweed in it. Six weeks ago, Bill took the old beater mower and leveled a 20 by 10 foot section right down to the dead thatch. The spot looked to be mostly full of goldenrod and blackberries , but there was also a good bit of milkweed – which of course means a ton of milkweed roots. As soon as we cleared out the competition, a forest of baby milkweed rose up, much faster off the mark than the blackberries (though they will win in the end). Almost every one of those tender young milkweeds has played host to a monarch caterpillar - or two or even three. We checked the tall, tough plants in the unmowed field: nada.
The hummingbirds are sitting around, always a sign summer is almost gone, and the Japanese beetles are ebbing after a particularly bad year. They’re still lunching the most vulnerable roses but there are almost none in the raspberries. Dry weather has made the Fall Gold berries even crumblier than usual, but it has made them sweeter, too. Same goes for the Boothby Blondes, our favorite cucumber. It’s a Maine heirloom with cream colored skin, black spines, and seeds that are almost sugary, especially when they (the seeds) are young. I keep waiting for it to be the darling of every farmers’ market, but meanwhile it’s very easy to grow. Seed Savers Exchange sells the seeds: www.seedsavers.org.