This spring and summer, Dallas County Conservation will embark on a Monarch Butterfly Habitat Project, and the public is invited to take part.

A three-part series of programs will be hosted at the Kuehn Conservation Area in April, June, and August. Part one will be held on April 8th at 2 p.m., and will focus on site selection and preparation. Naturalists will walk attendees through the process, including the selection of native pollinator plant species, and enlist their help in turf removal and tillage. The second program will be on June 3rd at 2 p.m. Attendees will take part in planting seeds and plugs in the site prepared at the April event. They will discuss the design and layout of a pollinator plot, and set up an experiment comparing seeds versus plugs.

The final event will be August 6th from 8:30-9:30 a.m. At this program, attendees can view the fruits of their work from the previous two sessions. Naturalists will help in identifying the plants and the pollinators visiting them, as well as discuss the maintenance of the plot. Participants will be equipped to replicate a plot at their own homes. To learn more, contact Dallas County Conservation at 515-465-3577.