Dried Milkweed Pods

The milkweed plants that I inspected during the summer for various insects have finally dried out and the pods have broken open, revealing their seeds. Some seeds were bursting out wildly like the plant above. Others were still packed in a tight array, like the one below

I grabbed a handful from one of the plants. As I continued along the path, I let them go one by one. The light breeze caught them, and I enjoyed watching them drift off into the field and fall among the other plants.

If the seeds sprout they might become food for Monarch butterflies and other insects next summer!