On Saturday, April 1, the West Pottawattamie Master Gardeners teamed up with Nancy Crews (a Mills County Master Gardener) to make over 1,300 seedballs for Milkweed Matters. Monarch butterflies need Milkweed to survive, so Milkweed Matters has a goal of making over 35,000 Milkweed seedballs this year. The Milkweed Matters RAGBRAI team will toss the seedballs from their bikes on the journey across Iowa this summer. Our host, Jane Kirchner, did a great job organizing our event and Nancy Crews with Mills County Extension and Outreach instructed our event.
How to make a seedball
Ingredients: clay, soil and seeds (in this case Common Milkweed seeds)
Tools: mixing containers, trays
Step One: Create your mixture of soil and clay, moisten.
Step Two: Roll mixture into balls, wearing gloves helps!
Step Three: Create an indent for the seeds
Step Four: Insert seeds into the indent
Step Five: Let it dry and then disperse! 
How can you help?
- Host a seedball making event with your organization or group
- Join the RAGBRAI riding team, Milkweed Matters
- Volunteer at an educational booth during the week of RAGBRAI
- Tell your friends about Monarchs and Milkweed!
Contact Information for Milkweed Matters
milkweedmattes.org
milkweedmatters@gmail.com
facebook.com/milkweedmatters
@milkweedmatters
How to get involved
To volunteer or schedule a seedball workshop, contact Nancy Crews with Mills County Extension and Outreach at ncrews@iastate.edu or 712.527.3316.