How much expertise does a children’s author need to write about monarch butterflies? In this episode, we find out.

It’s a special show for a special day. Our co-host Erin Alladin is launching her second picture book, Wait Like a Seed, and we’re testing just how much research she did….and how much she retained. Wait Like a Seed uses the relationship between monarch butterflies and milkweed to teach kids the life cycle of a seed, and at the back of the book are nine extra pages of information about both monarchs and milkweed. We know from Episode 6: Milkweed vs. Beardtongue that she knows her stuff on asclepias. But what about Danaus plexxipus? 

Sean comes in hot with some challenging questions from his young daughter (How do monarchs fly so far?). “How long do monarchs live” is a trick question, but Erin is ready for it. The conversation wings its way through life cycles (egg, larva, pupa, adult), migration (incredible), and the threats they face (numerous). If you’d like to help monarchs in your own garden, community, or region, Erin and Sean tell you how to grow a butterfly garden, join a conservation initiative, and access excellent resources online.  

For more information about Wait Like a Seed, contact your local bookstore or visit https://pajamapress.ca/book/wait-like-a-seed/. You might also enjoy Erin’s previous picture book, Outside, You Notice: https://pajamapress.ca/book/outside-you-notice/.  

Find information about Erin’s life as an author, editor, and presenter (she does great nature-based school visits!) at https://erin-alladin.com/. 

Follow her on social media:

TikTok (Gardening account): https://www.tiktok.com/@earthundaunted 

TikTok (Writing and Editing Account): https://www.tiktok.com/@erinalladin

Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/erinalladin.bsky.social 

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/erin-alladin/ 

Comments? Feedback? Want your garden question to be featured in a future Q&A segment? Email us, reach out over social media, or get Q&A priority by supporting us on Patreon. 

Bluesky: @plantsalwayswin.com 

TikTok: @plantsalwayswinpodcast 

YouTube: @plantsalwayswinpodcast

Website: www.plantsalwayswin.com 

Credits

Website Design and Illustration by Sophia Alladin

Intro and Outro Music from #Uppbeat (free for Creators!): https://uppbeat.io/t/soundroll/when-my-ukulele-plays

License code: GWOIMMBAS15FG6PH

Learn More and Help Monarchs

The Butterflyway Project: https://davidsuzuki.org/take-action/act-locally/butterflyway/ 

Xerces Society Milkweed Finder: https://www.xerces.org/milkweed/milkweed-seed-finder

North American Native Plant Society: https://nanps.org/native-plant-societies/

Canadian Wildlife Federation Garden Habitat Certification: https://cwf-fcf.org/en/explore/gardening-for-wildlife/action/get-certified/ 

The Mayors’ Monarch Pledge: https://www.nwf.org/MayorsMonarchPledge 

iNaturalist: https://www.inaturalist.org/ 

Monarch Joint Venture: https://monarchjointventure.org/

Monarch Watch: https://monarchwatch.org/ 

Citations

How fast monarchs fly

Davis, A. (2017, January 1). How fast does a monarch fly? A close look at the science. monarchscience. https://www.monarchscience.org/single-post/2016/12/31/how-fast-does-a-monarch-fly-a-close-look-at-the-science 

Monarch migration and daily travel distances

Fall Migration - How do they do it? (2022, August 11). Monarch Joint Venture. https://monarchjointventure.org/blog/fall-migration-how-do-they-do-it 

Monarch Migration. (n.d.). Monarch Watch. Retrieved April 28, 2025, from https://monarchwatch.org/migration/ 

The monarch life cycle

Life cycle. (2024, September 19). Monarch Joint Venture. https://monarchjointventure.org/monarch-biology/life-cycle

Livestock eating milkweed

Milkweed (Asclepias spp.) : USDA ARS. (n.d.). Retrieved April 28, 2025, from https://www.ars.usda.gov/pacific-west-area/logan-ut/poisonous-plant-research/docs/milkweed-asclepias-spp/

What Monarchs do during the Winter

Monarch Joint Venture. (2022, May 26). Overwintering. https://monarchjointventure.org/faq/overwintering

The rumored, presumably false, Lake Superior detour

Inglis-Arkell, E. (2013, May 24). Butterflies remember a mountain that hasn’t existed for millennia. Gizmodo. https://gizmodo.com/butterflies-remember-a-mountain-that-hasnt-existed-for-509321799

Identifying Males vs. Females

Male and Female Monarch Butterflies: How can you tell? (n.d.). Journey North. Retrieved April 28, 2025, from https://journeynorth.org/tm/monarch/id_male_female.html 

Monarchs’ Endangered Status

Monarch butterfly proposed for Endangered Species Act protection | U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service. (2024, December 10). FWS.gov. https://www.fws.gov/press-release/2024-12/monarch-butterfly-proposed-endangered-species-act-protection 

Canada, E. a. C. C. (2025, February 18). Monarch Butterfly: profile of a species at risk. Canada.ca. https://www.canada.ca/en/environment-climate-change/services/species-risk-public-registry/factsheets/monarch-butterfly.html

Monarch. (n.d.). ontario.ca. Retrieved April 28, 2025, from https://www.ontario.ca/page/monarch 

OE (Ophryocystis elektroscirrha), the protozoan parasite that affects monarch butterflies

University of Georgia. (n.d.). What is OE? | monarchhealth. Monarchhealth. Retrieved April 28, 2025, from https://www.monarchparasites.org/oe 

Natural history. (n.d.). Center for Biological Diversity. Retrieved April 28, 2025, from https://www.biologicaldiversity.org/species/invertebrates/monarch_butterfly/natural_history.html 

Pupae: They Go Runny

Jabr, F. (2024, February 20). How Does a Caterpillar Turn into a Butterfly? Scientific American. https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/caterpillar-butterfly-metamorphosis-explainer/ 

Timestamps

00:21 Introducing Erin Alladin, Children's Nonfiction Author

03:20 About the Picture Book Wait Like a Seed

6:48 Water Break: Contest Announcement

7:40 How Can Monarchs Fly for So Long?

10:05 Monarch Butterfly Life Cycle, Life Spans, and Migration

15:15 How Long and Far Monarchs Fly in a Day

17:35 Mass Migration Tangent

20:03 Identifying Male and Female Monarchs

21:15 Monarch Conservation Status

24:15 Threats Faced by Monarchs

25:13 Monarchs are Specialist Insects

27:32 Cocoon vs. Chrysalis

29:01 The Dangers of Tropical Milkweed and OE

32:15 Butterfly Metamorphosis

35:35 Is it Okay to Rear Butterflies?

39:45 Growing a Butterfly Garden

42:30 Protecting Butterfly Habitat in the Community

44:50 Monarch Predators and Toxicity

48:40 Plant Rant: You Don't Need Pesticides

51:10 Outro and Contact Us