Watching nature unfold: our monarch neighbors
There’s a lot blossoming here at Summers Corner – late season trees and flowers in our parks, vegetables and herbs in our cafe kitchen garden, and a growing community of beautiful homes and neighbors! We’ll be witnessing the awe-inspiring beauty of nature up-close soon when our resident monarch caterpillars emerge from their chrysalises and blossom into butterflies.
First – we have to share a bit of sad news. The monarch population has dropped by 90% in the past several decades, a decline that’s been attributed to climate change, loss of habitat due to deforestation, and a decrease in milkweed– a plant vital to a monarch’s survival.
Here at Summers Corner, we’ve taken an extra step to help these beauties thrive in our pollinator garden by planting a healthy patch of milkweed (thanks, Clemson Extension Master Gardeners!). In addition to being a monarch caterpillar’s one and only food source and a nursery-of-sorts for their eggs, the plant helps protect the species. Milkweed is poisonous to most monarch predators, staying in the insect’s system throughout their lifespan and in turn deterring predators from preying on the caterpillars or butterflies.
There are several generations of monarchs born throughout the year, but only the ones born in September and October will survive longer than 2-6 weeks (the average lifespan of the earlier generations). In fact, this 4th generation Monarch will live upwards of 6 months! And busy they will be: these beauties will travel the continent reproducing to ensure their species’ survival, and still have enough time to migrate south for the winter months.
We’ve done our part in creating a sanctuary for these winged creatures, and we can’t wait to watch nature unfold! In the past couple weeks, we’ve seen a plethora of monarch caterpillars in our pollinator garden, and last week – a chrysalis! It typically takes around 10 days for the butterfly to emerge, so we’re keeping our eyes peeled for our next beautiful, brightly-colored Summers Corner residents!
Join our growing Summerville, SC community: view our current inventory of quick move-in homes for sale. And tour our beautifully furnished models, open daily. Start your tour at the Corner House Cafe.
