Monarch Waystation Garden Kit

A garden kit is a collection of plants pre-selected by our nursery to meet a certain purpose, designed to make gardening goals easy. They can be used as a quick way to start gardening native without having to do extensive research on every plant.

Monarch butterflies are at risk due to a variety of factors, including loss of habitat and scarcity of the milkweed species needed as food by monarch caterpillars. To support this important species, the Monarch Way-station Kit provides the native flowers with which they evolved, blooming from they time they arrive in the spring to the time they migrate in the fall. This colorful variety of nectar plants will signal the presence of butterfly-friendly habitat to passing adults and other pollinators.

The Monarch Way-station provides 3 to 4 species of milkweed host plants native to Michigan as food for Monarch caterpillars, as well as a flowering shrub for chrysalis concealment and support. Monarch Butterflies must have milkweeds to lay their eggs - they are unable to use any other species of plant for their caterpillars, but they typically select a different plant to hang their chrysalis.

If we each provide milkweed host plants and all-season nectar plant food sources, we can create a chain of habitats, or way-stations, for Monarch butterflies as they migrate each year through North America to their overwintering sites in Mexico and California.

The Monarch Waystation is designed for average garden soil and full to part sun. It will contain one shrub seedling and 2 to 5 of each of the other species. A typical kit would contain the following mix of plants, but one way we keep the per plant costs low on garden kits is by reserving the right to substitute plants based on our current inventory. Your kit is likely to differ from the list below in exact species, however, the plants included will provide host plants and nectar plants needed by Monarch butterflies. If you need specific plants for your garden goals, consider supplementing your garden kit with quarts:

Butterfly, Common, Whorled, and/or Rose Milkweed - Monarch caterpillar host plant,
Shrubby Cinquefoil, Meadowsweet, Steeplebush, or New Jersey Tea - nectar plant and chrysalis shrub,
Stiff or other Goldenrod - late season nectar plant,
Early or other Sunflower - long-season nectar plant,
Bergamot or Prairie Phlox - early nectar plant,
Joe Pye Weed - prolific and favored nectar plant,
New England or other Aster - late nectar plant,
Northern and/or other Blazing Star - favorite late summer nectar plants,
Purple or other Coneflower - summer nectar plant.

If substitutions are necessary, our first choices would be Pale Agoseris, Boneset, Black-eyed Susan, Culver's Root, Cutleaf Coneflower, Dogtooth Daisy, Mountain Mint, Showy or Grey-Headed Coneflower, Hoary or Blue Vervain, or Lanceleaf Coreopsis. These plants are also recommended if you wish to expand your Monarch garden.

This economical kit includes 38 plugs that fill 40 square feet at 1-foot spacing with a small border - a 4'x10' bed; or up to 86 square feet at 1.5 sq. ft. spacing - a 6'x14' bed. How is this kit different than our Butterfly Kit?

The Monarch Waystation contains more milkweeds for hosting/feeding Monarch Caterpillars. The non-milkweeds in this kit are included to provide full-season nectar for large butterflies.
The Butterfly Kit provides host plants for other butterflies, with nectar being a secondary benefit. The butterfly kit will also support Monarchs because it contains a milkweed and nectar plants, but it focuses on more butterfly variety and includes host plants for Checkerspots, Fritillaries, Skippers, Painted & American Ladies, and other local butterflies.

Best bet? Get one of each!