An Ode to Milkweed
Milkweed growing oh so strong,
welcoming Monarchs with your fragrant song!
Leaves so tasty, green and bright,
filling caterpillars with certain delight!
Life will grow on leaf and stem,
then flutter off to begin again.
Milkweed, milkweed growing strong,
thank you for bringing Monarchs along!
Haiku
Niagara Falls
Spewing, Gushing, Roaring, Wet
Powerful Water
Niagara Falls
Spilling over, water roars
Unstoppable Wet
The backstory to the haiku is that the use of the word “Niagara” demonstrates how sloppy we get in our annunciation and pronunciation of words. I used to ask my writer’s circle students how many syllables the word “Niagara” had. Virtually, none of them would guess correctly – that it has four syllables. It was a good introduction to counting syllables, how some words have more or less syllables than one thinks, and how to use a dictionary to confirm the syllabic count. What other words have you found that are difficult to decipher the syllables due to sloppy errors in our speech?
This post is part of Poetry Friday. Since I can never remember the kind poet who gave me the link to the list of hosts for Poetry Friday, I am posting it here for myself (and, for you, if you’d like to participate, as anyone can). Thank you! Enjoy!
The Apples in My Orchard 
Wednesday.
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Good one! Thx.
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I’m a huge fan of milkweeds and try to ensure they have room to grown on our land. Their fragrance is simple divine and the monarch visits are a bonus!
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Thank you for growing them! They are an important plant!
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I’ve planted mine this year, hoping for some butterfly visits next year! Love “Life will grow on leaf and stem,
then flutter off to begin again.”
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Thanks! I hope you get some butterfly visitors next summer, too!
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I love the milkweed ode! I know you must enjoy having them, along with the butterfly beauties they attract. Thank you for sharing, and Happy New Year!
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Thanks so much! Happy New Year to you too!
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I can’t wait for milkweed season! I had my first monarchs this year (after growing milkweed for 3 years)!!
The Poetry Friday schedule (and archives) can also be found here: http://kidlitosphere.org/poetry-friday/
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Great! Congrats on getting some monarchs! Butterfly gardening has been a hobby of mine for about 15 years. I got my start by helping students put in a butterfly garden at one of our schools in 2004…..been hooked ever since! Thanks for the schedule, too!
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Monarchs and milkweed are favorites of mine, I’ve written many poems and painted both often. In the summer my yard is filled with milkweeds, and last summer I had an abundance of Monarchs. Thanks for your poem and shining light on all here!
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You have some great illustrations in your shop of both monarchs and milkweeds! I also have a yard filled with milkweeds, three different types, that help me raise monarchs (I’ve done this for 15 years). Last summer was a bountiful year for Monarchs, for sure! I’m glad you could relate to the poem. Thanks.
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Milkweed has always been one of my favorites. My childhood best friend and I used to wander around a nearby farm, looking for dried pods so we could watch the seeds float away.
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I’ve been growing milkweeds in my own yard for about 11 years and have three different types. Before that, about 2004, I started a butterfly garden at the elementary school where my son’s attended school. It was certified as a monarch way station. Milkweed is a great plant to demonstrate seed disbursement to children. Sounds like you had fun with it as a child.
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