Smiling Sky Farm Pasture of Milkweed

We manage our farm which grows tons of native milkweed & wildflowers in our 34 acres of mixed grass prairie pasture to time our hay harvests not cutting too early or too late to make sure the milkweed becomes available at the correct times of year, especially in the mid to late summer so there is a good amount for the returning trip. Never, ever spray anything ever at our farm. Also concentrate on wildflowers & our 3 rescue pot belly pigs maintain an acre of wildflowers which they root & cultivate every year resulting in an amazing area of wildflowers which are always heavily visited by monarchs especially in the fall. I would so love to share photos of their work & our farm.

Jacob’s Meadow for Monarchs

In a pasture on our property ( no livestock) we have dedicated a large portion in dedication to our late son.
This area has great sun and water supply.
It is visible to public to see our efforts in helping the Monarchs in Enid, OK.
We purchased pollination seed as well as a large amount of actual seeds from a friends garden.

McCarvers’ Monarch Bar & Grill

Converting a 54-acre heritage family farm in Eastern Johnston County into a wildlife conservatory and organic vineyard, both of which preclude the use of herbicides and pesticides. Since 2014, we have broadcast milkweed seeds and propagated natural flowering plants while reforesting much of the land in hardwoods. We usually see our first monarch patrons in mid-March and their returning heirs leave around Thanksgiving.

Lazy KT Ranch near Freedom, OK

The Lazy KT Ranch near Freedom, OK is fondly known to many as the ‘home of JackAss Ridge’ (due to 4 adopted wild burros & 3 mustangs that run free on our ranch). It is always our priority to utilize beneficial land stewardship practices aimed at restoring the prairie, while eradicating the ever invasive Eastern Red Cedar. This means applying fire to the land in a prescribed burn setting with the help of our local prescribed burn association members who belong to the Cimarron Range Preservation Association in Freedom, OK.

Prescribed burn associations reflect a great culture of neighbors helping neighbors to safely conduct prescribed burning on a large scale basis. By using prescribed fire and a grazing plan to restore our prairies, we are geared towards great improvements of the land that in turn promotes habitat enhancement for wildlife, monarch butterflies and prairie chickens, at the same time increasing pounds of growth in our progressive cow-calf Black Angus cattle operation. We apply prescribed fire to the land on a regular basis to benefit our ranch.

Since we started using fire, we have seen a huge increase in the desired wildflowers and milkweeds that the monarch butterflies need and love, plus the return of a nice mosaic diversity of plant species and native grasses. We also cultivate wildflower seeds and desirous flowers in our yard to promote monarch habitats. Check out our facebook pages for both the Lazy KT Ranch and the Cimarron Range Preservation Association.