Show Me Milkweed Plants. You can t raise monarchs without the milkweed family of plants. Common milkweed asclepias syriaca is a native herbaceous perennial whose main virtue is its appeal to butterflies especially the monarch which deposits its eggs on the milkweed when the caterpillars hatch they feed on the leaves of milkweed.
Deadheading milkweed is not necessary but it will keep the plants looking tidy and may promote further blooms. Milkweed family of plants monarch butterfly food source. Add to likebox 131216245 immature fruits follicles aka pods of the common milkweed and.
Common milkweed plants grow to about 2 to 4 feet in height with a thin vertical growth habit.
If you do it right after the first flowering you can expect a second crop of blooms. Most species are toxic to humans and many other species primarily due to the presence of cardenolides although as with many such plants there are species that feed upon them i e. You can t raise monarchs without the milkweed family of plants. Asclepias syriaca commonly called common milkweed butterfly flower silkweed silky swallow wort and virginia silkweed is a species of flowering plant it is in the genus asclepias the milkweeds this species is native to southern canada and of much of the conterminous eastern u s east of the rocky mountains excluding the drier parts of the prairies.