Learn More About the Mayors Monarch Pledge
2022 UPDATE:
Monarch Festival, Aug 17:
On Wed, Aug 17, starting at 5 pm, the community is invited to celebrate the monarch butterfly. This will be a bi-lingual, Spanish and English celebration with food trucks, games, traditional Mexican dance and music, an Encanto dance party, a monarch costume parade and an opportunity to learn more about how we can help monarch butterflies. And, if dressing up for fun events suits you, come dressed as a butterfly or as a pollinator.
Schedule of events:
5 pm: Welcome
5:15 pm: Mariachi band
5:30 pm: Ballet Folklorico
5:45 pm Librarians - Read a Bi-ligual Book
6 pm: Mariachi band - Costume Parade
6:15 pm: Ballet Folklorico
6:30 pm: Puppet Wagon
7 pm: Monarch Information
7:15 pm: Kids Encanto Dance Party
7:30 pm: Salsa Dance Party
8 pm: Thank you and see you next year!
2021 INFO:
Do you love butterflies, birds, and bees? Do you love gardening, flowers, making green healthy spaces? Do you want to do good in your community? Join the mayor in planning how Columbia Heights can take part in a pollinator initiative to help the Monarch butterfly population and other species affected by climate change, diminishing food and habitat spaces, and pesticide use. The mayor is looking for a group of people who want to work on this issue during 2021. The City must complete three tasks in order to be a part of the MMP (Mayor's Monarch Pledge). The mayor held a Zoom informational meeting in February to kick-start the initiative.
If you're interested in getting involved, please email monarch@columbiaheightsmn.gov.
Mayor's Book Club
Blooming Heights Garden Tour
Monarch Movie Night
Classes
More About Monarch Pledge
Gardening Tips
More Ways to Help
Watch Mayor's Kick-Off Meeting
Upcoming Events and Classes Related to the Mayor's Monarch Pledge
| Mayor's Book Club |
| “Flight Behavior” by Barbara Kingsolver. Let’s read together! In celebration of the Mayor’s Monarch Pledge, the library and Mayor Amáda Márquez Simula will host a book discussion of the novel “Flight Behavior” by Barbara Kingsolver. The book is available at the Columbia Heights Library and electronically. |
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Registration is required. Participants choose one of the two discussion dates to attend: |
| Blooming Heights Garden Tour |
| Did you know Columbia Heights Public Schools District has an award winning school garden that acts as an outdoor classroom for students of all ages? Join their agriculture specialist, Wes Nugteren, on a tour through the Blooming Heights School Garden. See the food gardens and pollinator gardens and learn how they help one another. Get tips on how you can incorporate maintenance practices into your own gardening. Blooming Heights is located behind the CHPS District Center/Family Center Building, 1440 49th Ave NE |
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Registration is required. $15 |
| Classes |
| Pollinator Class I, June 16, 6:30-8 pm, online |
| Pollinator Class II, Aug 17, 6:30-8 pm, online |
| Ten Easy Tips to Creating a Pollinator Friendly Yard, June 22, 7-8 pm, on Zoom |
| Ask a Landscape Architect, July 14, 6:30-7:30 pm, on Zoom |
| Senior Watercolor Class "Monarchs & Milkweed," July 28, 10 am-12:30 pm, Murzyn Hall |
| Building a Better Backyard for Pollinators, Sept 21, 6-7:30 pm, Columbia Heights Public Library |
More About the National Wildlife Federation's Mayors Monarch Pledge
Mayors and other heads of local and tribal government are taking action to help save the monarch butterfly, an iconic species whose eastern populations have declined by 90% and western populations by 99% in recent years. Through the National Wildlife Federation's Mayors' Monarch Pledge, U.S. cities, municipalities, and other communities are committing to create habitat for the monarch butterfly and pollinators, and to educate residents about how they can make a difference at home and in their community.
Pollinator Gardening Tips
- Plant native flowering plants. Get a list for your zip code at nwf.org/nativeplants.
- Reduce the size of your grass lawn and replace it with native blooming plants
- Attract hummingbirds by planting dense shrubs for nesting and native plants with bright red and orange tubular flowers for food. Supplement as needed with a nectar feeder
- Leave standing dead trees, fallen logs, and bare patches of sandy soil. Most native bees are solitary and lay eggs in tiny tunnels in dead trees, fallen branches, hollow stems, or in sandy soil. You can even put out a bee house filled with nesting tubes.
- Plant host plants. Butterflies need special “host plants” as food for their caterpillars. Monarchs, for example, rely on milkweed, so planting it will provide essential habitat. Find host plants for butterflies and moths native to your area at nwf.org/nativeplants.
- Avoid Pesticides. Native plants attract ladybugs, predatory wasps, and other natural enemies of garden pests. These insects are a sign of a healthy garden, and an important food source for birds. No need to spray pesticides. Hand-pick pests if you have an infestation or wash them off with a stream of water from a hose. If you must spray: Only use organic or natural pest deterrents such as soap, garlic and chili pepper; spray only at night, when flowers are not blooming, and when it’s dry and windless; use products that target specific pests rather than broad-spectrum ones; avoid anything labeled as toxic to bees or that kills the “weedy” flowers pollinators visit; specifically avoid garden products that include neonicotinoids; and carefully read and follow application instructions on any spray, using them sparingly.
- Map your pollinator friendly space on the Map Our Monarch's page here.
- Map your pollinator friendly space on the Map Our Monarch's page here.
- Plant pollinators in pots on balconies and other small areas
- Rent a garden plot
- Spread the word about the Mayor's Monarch Pledge! Share the email monarch@columbiaheightsmn.gov and website columbiaheightsmn.gov/monarch with people you think may be interested in participating!
2-4-2021