Butterfly gardens topic of parks event

A monarch butterfly outside the Felt Mansion, 6597 138th Ave., last summer.

The Laketown Township Parks and Recreation Commission is closing out its free indoor winter events season by looking at ways to preserve the monarch butterfly.

The Butterfly Garden presentation by Melissa Eikenberry of Hosting Butterflies is 10:30 a.m. Saturday, April 26, 2025, at the Carriage House at the Felt Estate, 6597 138^th Ave. The event is free.

Hosting Butterflies is based in Twin Lake in Muskegon County.

Registration is not required but participants can pre-register to guarantee a seat by sending an email to Parks@laketowntwp.org.

Butterfly event

At the Laketown Township event, participants will learn what to plant to help monarchs in their yearly migration, the difference between nectar plants and pollinator plants and why both are needed.

Butterflies are an important pollinator species for both agriculture and wild plants, said event organizer Mary Jo Bertolino, parks commission member. Monarch butterflies are a good indicator of environmental health, but their numbers are falling due to the decline in their natural habitat.

The event will focus on butterfly gardens, what to plant and where to plant them.

Plans are in the works for butterfly-friendly plantings around the township.

“We will focus on putting together an educational butterfly garden at Felt and hopefully be able to add one to Huyser Farm Park in the future,” said Bertolino.

The parks commission has been working for several years on a half-acre butterfly garden at Huyser Farm Park, 4188 64^th St.

Past programs

The April butterfly event is the final installment in the first season of indoor programs sponsored by the parks commission.

Events started in January with a hands-only CPR course led by the Graafschap Fire Department. In February, more than 70 people packed the Carriage House to talk wild mushroom identification. In March, invasive species identification and management took center stage.

The parks commission is planning events for next year.

For more information on Laketown Township parks, visit here.