Date: 05/18/2005

Number: 1

In the past week, my deeply rooted mature patch of Asclepias syriaca
broke dormancy and emerged just after a warm spring rain drenched the
soil. Today, I counted 182 stems from one to four inches tall in a
patch that measures 15x90. The patch is 21 years old, has had several
new A. syriaca stems transplanted from other areas to freshen its gene
pool, and over the years, has had hundreds of seedlings removed for
others to start a monarch butterfly garden at their schools or
churches. The one-year old A. syriaca seedlings that I heeled into a
loose bed in the garden (formerly a raised spinach bed) emerged the
first week in May as their roots were not nearly so deep as the mature
patch. So a direct connection to soil temperature at different depths
was observed.

Brevard, NC

Latitude: 35.2 Longitude: -82.8

Observed by: Ina
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