If you've driven down two-lane highways in rural parts of North Florida recently, you may have noticed a spate of new signs that designate the grassy knolls bordering the asphalt as wildflower areas. The signs likely feel redundant right about now as thousands of milkweeds produce thick umbels packed full of pentagonal buds and fully developed flowers. Many of these flowers and all the monarchs they attract have the same attention-grabbing orange color as the safety vests worn by workers who carefully planted each milkweed by hand months earlier.

If you've driven down two-lane highways in rural parts of North Florida recently, you may have noticed a spate of new signs that designate the grassy knolls bordering the asphalt…

If you have driven through rural roads in northern Florida recently, you may have noticed new wildflower signs and patches of orange flowers growing along the roadside. These are…