ANNOUNCEMENT:
Monarchs In The Rough Habitat Development Project at Sterling Hills Golf Course.
Hello Ventura County Neighbors,
Sterling Hills Golf Course, one of our public and local community golf courses in Camarillo, is now a participant of “Monarchs In the Rough”, a milkweed and nectar plant seed grant program funded by a partnership between Audubon International, the US Golf Association, and several other conservation programs.
Many thanks to Lee Harlow (GM and Director of Golf) and the Zaruka Family (owners of Sterling Hills Golf Course), for this wonderful opportunity. Please help support this local business because even in these tough economic times they care about conservation and a species on the brink of becoming endangered.
I am coordinating the project with the help of fellow Monarch fans, gardeners, golfers, and Sterling Hills homeowners. I have a background in the medical field, and am a construction project manager, landscape designer, and gardener – as well as an avid golfer. I have been growing milkweed in my backyard and at client’s job sites for many years, and the wonder of the Monarch continues to amaze me. They need our help now more than ever as milkweed is being lost to pesticides and development.
The main purpose is to establish out-of-play areas of the golf course that is pesticide-free, with several varieties of Milkweed (Asclepias varieties, preferably native) and other nectar plants to help the seriously declining population of Monarch Butterflies and reverse habitat loss.
The Monarch is totally reliant on milkweed as their host plant, and their life cycle cannot exist without it.
More information can be seen here:
https://monarchsintherough.org/
Due to COVID-19 the start of the program had been delayed, and planned fundraising events cancelled. But we are moving forward to begin planting the site as soon as possible now, and again in the fall for seed germination. The golf course has donated some funds to get it started (even though the golf course industry isn’t the most robust), and generous homeowners have also contributed donations and labor. I am volunteering my time for this project and also in communication with the Xerces Society, Monarch Watch, and several entomologists (for their advice on creating a successful habitat), and a local vegetable farmer (for advice on germinating milkweed plugs in greenhouses for large-scale planting).
More info to follow as the project progresses. A call for volunteers to plant milkweed and pull weeds will be upcoming, and we can safely social distance outdoors!
Donations are greatly needed for materials and seed germination going forward so if you would like to make a donation you can drop it by the Pro Shop or mail a check directly to:
Sterling Hills Golf Course
Monarchs In The Rough Habitat Development Project
c/o Lee Harlow, Director of Golf
901 Sterling Hills Drive
Camarillo, CA 93010