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In this Aug. 19, 2015, file photo, Tom Merriman stands behind a monarch in his butterfly atrium at his nursery in Vista, Calif. Milkweed has long been considered a nuisance on North American farmlands but now, more than 100 farmers in Quebec and Vermont are planting it in their fields to help restore the declining population of monarchs, which use that plant exclusively for their eggs and to feed the caterpillars. The farmers are also tapping a new market for the milkweed fibers. (Gregory Bull/AP, file)

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For generations, North American farmers have despised milkweed and done their best to rid their lands of it.

By Associated Press August 2, 2018