MILKWEED MANIA

 Got milkweed? I do! My neighbor in the yard next to me planted milkweed a few years ago in order to attract Monarch butterflies. Evidently it was "plant it and they will come." Then she moved out and left her husband AND the milkweed. For those who don't know (me included) the milkweed multiplies and is very invasive. So now I have milkweed invading my yard. I pull out most of it because it comes up everywhere. I have left a few plants by our common fence.  What you are looking at is the seed pod formed from the flowerhead where the butterfly lays its eggs. They hatch inside and live on the stuff in the big fat 3-4" pods. Then they come out as a big fuzzy worm before they form a chrysalis and turn into a butterfly at some point.   

These plants are over 6' and have several pods. So I'm hoping for a nice "crop" of butterflies , maybe in September. I suppose they will stick around for a short time and then head south to maybe Pacific Grove or Mexico.