MacKenzie Kuras, & Dr. Brenton Spies
Abundance of milkweed (Danaus plexippus) is crucial for the monarch butterfly’s (Danaus plexippus) life cycle. Protecting its habitat is vital for this endangered species. The National Park Services aims to plant 100,000 narrowleaf milkweed seedlings within Rancho Sierra Vista/Satwiwa in Ventura County. The NPS aims for milkweed resilience in the sites therefore new planting techniques were explored to hypothesize the best planting practices for this native species. Three milkweed pruning techniques were explored to examine overall succession above and below ground. Among 112 plants, above ground measurements of aphid count was insignificant. Within root measurements for below ground data root length, width, weight, root count, and grid count was also insignificant. New stock regrowth was seen among pruned plants. Overall there is no notable data to prove that pruning directly assisted in plant succession. This study would benefit from a longer duration to account for milkweed seasonal dormancy to see more accurate results. Despite no significant results, foregoing pruning within NPS restoration sites will result in saving valuable time and labor resources.
1:00pm – 2:15pm
Grand Salon
Environmental Science and Resource Management