Native Instinct
For me, it started with a couple of milkweed plants, specifically aquatic milkweed, which is native to South Carolina. I wanted to teach the kids about monarch butterflies—how the life cycle of one animal species could depend entirely upon one plant species. I also wanted them to witness the magic of caterpillar to chrysalis to butterfly, and to marvel at the idea that the migration of these wispy and fragile creatures can span 2,500 miles. We cleared out a small, mostly unused space beside the house that unruly privet had lorded over, and put in a raised bed. Along with the milkweed, we soon added salvia, goldenrod, and brown-eyed Susans, all plants that would attract butterflies, bees, and even hummingbirds. I proudly told the kids we now had a “pollinator…
