For years, the business owners of Madison IN have cared for the city owned garden beds along Mainstreet.  For the last 3 years, the 5X20 garden in front of Fountain Alley BodyCare has been part of a registered Monarch Waystation (ID #22300).

The City of Madison has decided to take over management of the garden beds, they will be destroying any plants that are not removed by the business owners.

We are not asking them to leave the space in our care, or not to plant whatever they would like. We're simply asking them to leave only a portion of the Milkweed-the host plant for the Monarch Butterfly. On December 15, 2020, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced that listing the monarch as endangered or threatened under the Endangered Species Act is warranted, but precluded by higher priority listing actions. Some scientists say the numbers are down 90% from 20 years ago.  

When confronted about the destruction of the milkweed, local officials' response was, "can't they just go somewhere else," and even suggested some less than ideal locations where the plant would not get full sun, and likely die. The garden space has been used to raise awareness and has encouraged many to plant their own milkweed, vital to the survival of the Monarch as it is the ONLY host plant for the species to rest during migration and lay eggs. Last year alone, we reared 75 Monarchs from this small space. There are NO OTHER plants that the Monarch Caterpillar can feed on.

Please sign our petition and/or call the Madison Mayors office at (812) 265-8300 to voice your concerns.
Thank you!