A series of workshops will be launched this week that are designed to teach Iowans how to extend the habitat for monarch butterflies and other pollinators. Liz Ripley, an outreach specialist at the Iowa Learning Farms on the campus of Iowa State University, says the four workshops will be held in four different areas of the state during February and March — and they’re all free.
Like farmers, Ripley says pollinators help ensure the world eats. Studies find about 75% of the world’s flowering plants and about 35% of the world’s food crops depend on pollinators. That’s why the workshops are important, she says, as all Iowans can play a role.
Iowa is in the middle of the annual monarch commute lane as the orange-and-black insects made the incredibly long journey. Experts can establish their population counts by the number of acres occupied when they overwinter in Mexico, and the numbers have fallen drastically in the past 20 years.
She says the workshops will provide Iowans with an opportunity to learn more about monarchs and how to integrate additional pollinator habitat into the state’s landscape.
To RSVP, contact Ripley at 515-294-2473 or [email protected]. www.iowalearningfarms.org.
