Monona Butterfly Garden has blossomed in 25 years
Jim Langhus (speaking) and Shirley Seitz (left) were among the current and former Monona Butterfly Gardens and Trails committee members who were at the 25th anniversary open house on July 19. (Photos by Audrey Posten)
A 5K walk/run and open house celebrated the 25th anniversary of the Monona Butterfly Garden. Here, participants in the 5K walk past a section of the garden near the entrance, which was re-planted five years ago.
“It is just so beautiful here. The colors, the vibrancy,” shared former committee member Shirley Seitz. “This is our place of quiet and calm.”
The Butterfly Garden began 25 years ago as an Iowa Earth Year 2000 project to preserve a section of property that was an eye sore, but a spot where migrating Monarch butterflies were known to roost each fall. Now, the derelict patch of land at the end of Davis Street is a vibrant garden and trail system.
By Audrey Posten | Times-Register
The Monona Butterfly Garden marked its 25th anniversary with a 5K walk/run and open house on July 19. The event celebrated the transformation of a derelict patch of land at the end of Davis Street into what is now a vibrant garden and trail system.
“Twenty-five years goes way faster than you expect. It makes us stop and look back at where we started,” reflected Monona Butterfly Gardens and Trails committee member Ila Benzing. “This was basically a ditch with some scrubby trees, bushes and weeds. We lived just up the street and I would tell my kids, ‘No, you can’t come here. This is off limits.’ It’s just a good reminder that there’s been a lot done.”
Fellow committee member Jim Langhus said the Butterfly Garden began as an Iowa Earth Year 2000 project to preserve a section of property that was an eye sore, but a spot where migrating Monarch butterflies were known to roost each fall.
The Butterfly Trail was later added to mitigate erosion issues in the valley. The trail grew to connect the Memorial Garden and Garden View Park when they were created, and has since been extended to Gateway Park. It connects to city sidewalks, allowing people to walk, run and bike between Monona parks, the pool, school and city center without having to walk on the road.
“You can actually do the 5K on your own any time you want to, just by walking on the trails and sidewalks in Monona,” he noted.
Benzing and Langhus described the Butterfly Gardens and Trails as “taking on a life of their own” over the years.
“Some things were planned and some just sort of happened,” Benzing said.
The Beinborn brothers donated the original piece of property, according to the committee. Property from the Darbys helped develop the first set of trails.
“A lot of people got involved,” Langhus recalled. “It’s not just one, two or three people.”
Shirley Seitz and husband Louis were original committee members. Part of her duties included tracking who volunteered and donated—and how much.
The support “was just awesome,” she said. “People were really good and cooperative and we just got help. It was unbelievable.”
The current committee includes seven members who regularly maintain the Butterfly Garden. Two 4-H groups also have gardens, and volunteers from several churches work at different times. Each spring, MFL MarMac third graders clean the garden and plant their own section.
“Part of the idea with the third graders was they were old enough to do some work and take ownership of this place,” Seitz remarked.
“And now they’ve been doing that for over 20 years,” said Langhus. “That’s the kind of dedication it takes to make something like this happen.”
Not just time, but money, has been put into the Monona Butterfly Gardens and Trails as well.
Langhus noted countless memorials and donations over the years along with Resource Enhancement and Protection (REAP), Upper Mississippi Gaming Corporation, Mae Reusser Community Betterment and Clayton County Foundation for the Future grants. Interest from an endowment, which people can donate to, can be used to advance the Butterfly Gardens and Trails.
“There are a lot of ways we raise money,” Langhus explained. “We really appreciate everything that’s donated to us.”
The Butterfly Gardens and Trails are well utilized. Benzing said trail counts and general observation reveal many kids utilize the trail as a safe way to reach school or the pool.
People frequently use it for exercise too.
“We get a lot of walkers,” she noted. “We get a lot of people with dogs that, even though there’s the dog park now, are still walking the trail.”
And although not officially open during the winter due to liability, “we find we’ve had some people do cross country skiing on there, or some snowshoe. So it really becomes a year-round amenity,” Benzing added.
Committee members find the Butterfly Garden therapeutic.
“It is just so beautiful here. The colors, the vibrancy,” Seitz shared. “This is our place of quiet and calm.”
Benzing found working in the gardens especially helpful the year her parents died and during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“You could do this when you couldn’t do much of anything else. Along the line, it’s been a really good thing,” she said.
The committee welcomes help if community members want to volunteer.
“We’ve always got jobs for people of any ability level. You don’t even need to know what a weed looks like. There’s mulch that can be put out, there’s watering that can be done,” Benzing said. “We would love to have more people come and work with us.”
Ultimately, said Langhus, the Monona Butterfly Gardens and Trails are a city park for all to take ownership in and enjoy.
“This is your park,” he remarked. “It’s not just a spot. It’s a whole trail system that includes a lot of different spots around Monona.”
Langhus’s son Grant, Monona’s mayor, spoke at the July 19 open house. He said he and the city council recognize the importance of parks and recreation to Monona and its residents. That will be reflected in new billboards along the highway in the coming weeks.
“They were redesigned reflecting the main pillars making Monona what it is today. The Butterfly Garden jump started no less than half of those pillars,” Langhus said. “It is a large contributor to Monona’s current success, which can be easily measured by new residents, but also continued interest in Monona by existing residents. The council and I thank you for your efforts. The amount of time spent maintaining the Butterfly Garden and accompanying resources, including the trail system, do not go unnoticed.”
