The Tennessee Department of Transportation (TDOT) recently launched a new initiative aimed at restoring and preserving habitats for monarch butterflies and other pollinator species across the state.
Happy Pollinator Week! 🐝🌺🦋
Read more about this year's Project Milkweed and how you can help save pollinators: 👉 https://t.co/KMebdR0y9q pic.twitter.com/Fl3u8AYy8H— myTDOT (@myTDOT) June 20, 2023
Project Milkweed, according to TDOT, is a mail-order resource that provides free native milkweed seeds to Tennesseans upon completion of an online form.
The department’s rollout of the new mail-order resource was made in conjunction with National Pollinator Week.
Milkweed is a flowering plant that serves a critical role as a host plant in the life cycle of monarch butterflies, as it provides a place for monarchs to lay their eggs and serves as food for their larvae and caterpillars.
Tennesseans can place an order for two types of seed species – Red Milkweed (Asclepias incarnata) or Common Milkweed (Asclepias syriaca). Residents can request up to five packets of seeds for both milkweed species. Each packet contains 20 seeds.
Both the monarch butterfly population and milkweed habitats have experienced a 90% decline since 1992 due to habitat loss, disease, pesticide use, and changing climate, according to TDOT, which called efforts like Project Milkweed “critical” to restoring the pollinators and host plants.
Every week is #PollinatorWeek🌼 for Michael and TDOT's Highway Beautification team, who are dedicated to growing, supporting, and protecting pollinators (like Polli the Bee! 🐝) across Tennessee! Visit https://t.co/8PiqEFJuY1 to learn more!🌱🤝🌎 #myTDOT #WeAreEPIC pic.twitter.com/pOY8bWSFOJ
— myTDOT (@myTDOT) June 20, 2023
TDOT’s new resource is a subset of its Pollinator Habitat Program, a “partnership between multiple state agencies and nonprofits that aims to conserve native pollinators and pollinator habitats.”
“Pollinators are vital to life, growing food, and the economy of Tennessee,” TDOT Commissioner Butch Eley said in a statement. “This effort is an excellent way to educate the public about their critical importance and the threats they face and expand pollinator-friendly practices from TDOT-owned rights-of-way to neighborhood backyards.”
Pollinators, TDOT notes, are “more diverse than just bees and butterflies and can include birds, bats, beetles, moths, and more.” By pollinating food crops, pollinators contribute an estimated $24 billion to the economy.
Orders for milkweed seeds are taken on a rolling basis and will be fulfilled during September and October just in time for fall planting, according to TDOT. For more information on Project Milkweed and how to order seeds, click here.
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Kaitlin Housler is a reporter at The Tennessee Star and The Star News Network.
Photo “Butterflies” by Pixabay.
