Well this forum has officially turned on my interest in butterflies to a burning desire to plant an area specifically to aid in their well being. I even joined the North American Butterfly Association and the local chapter here in the Tennessee Valley. From what I have been able to understand from some research is that the milkweed is vital as both host and nectar plants. I have a well planted yard with butterfly bushes, Joe pye, coneflowers, etc but want to incorporate some milkweed. A. tuberosa can be seen earlier in the year in fields and along the roadway so digging a few of those is possible if one is familiar enough with what the plant looks like when not in bloom. At the present time I am not. It would be my luck to think I am planting milkweed and in fact plant "wacky" weed. Is there a good source of milkweed available from any online vendors? Will the plants bloom the first year if started from seed or should I try to find plugs? I need some education and appreciate all input.

Where you are, you should be able to grow A. tuberosa, A. incarnata, A. syriaca. When I lived in OH, I found plants at stores occasionally but haven't seen any since moving to AL. AFAIK, all are easy to grow from seeds found at the right time, if you like to do that kind of thing. Many people save them to share for the cost of postage, you may want to investigate that.

The blooms aren't important as far as being a host plant. It sounds like you have other nectar plants to satisfy that requirement, so even if your Asclepias didn't bloom the first year, caterpillars could still munch on it. Depending on how many caterpillars you get, one or two big host plants in the midst of many other nectar-producing plants should be sufficient. I don't know how big of a garden you're talking about, but the ratio of one host plant to 15-20 nectar plants (depending on size,) should be a good basic guide. You'll get a feel for it as you go along.

Some annuals (where you are) that make great nectar plants... Coleus, Basil, Pentas, Zinnias, Lantana (some might be hardy where you are.)

Dave, I appreciate what you're trying to do for the butterflies. Milkweeds in general are notoriously hard to transplant from the wild. The taproots are usually deep. We don't have A. tuberosa growing around here, but I've read can be hard to transplant. If you try it, wait until the weather is cool, find smaller plants and dig deep enough to get enough of the roots. Get it into a pot and watered right away. Shade helps until it recovers. We have one species of milkweed here that isn't very hard to move, but that's not the norm for the species. We're hoping for the best for the Monarchs (and the Queens also), but things are not going well for them.

Hi, just found this thread…
The Santa Rosa Gardens has A. tuberosa, and better yet, it's on sale right now. I didn't buy them all!
http://www.santarosagardens.co...

Besides Monarchs don't forget host plants for the Swallowtails. Easily found as they feed on Parsley or Dill or Fennel, all common herbs.

Dave... would you like some seeds of Red butterfly weed...Bloodflower asclepis curvassavica 'Silky Deep Red" ?? If so, t-mail me your addy. I have some left that are hopefully still viable.

Dave: Asclepias curassavica is listed as zone 9 - 11 but I'd think you could grow it as an annual.

This is the one gingin has to offer: Mexican Milkweed (Asclepias curassavica 'Silky Deep Red')


I have extra seeds of this one (which looks almost identical): Tropical Milkweed (Asclepias curassavica) I think the seeds will still be viable in the spring as long as they are stored in a dry location. Shoot me a tree-mail if you'd like to try seeds of this one too.

I have grown Tropical Milkweed as an annual here in my garden. I makes those beautiful flowers all season long and is a strong grower. Plus of course it is a Monarch host plant just like the other milkweeds are.

Hummingbirds and Monarch Butterflies enjoy the nectar of Tropical Milkweed, and yes it's a host for the Monarch Caterpillar!

Last month:

Very pretty Lin.

Thanks Rita! I've shared those photo's before and just realized the hummer one is my avatar pic. I think I need to find a new photo to display for my avatar.

Lin, I had the same Avatar for years and just recently have figgured out how to change it. Now I am on a roll and have changed the pictures often.

I change mine every so often but sometimes don't even think about it.

Check out this ... http://shop.monarchwatch.org/s...

And here is a link to a milkweed fact sheet that helps you figure out which species to plant in your area. http://monarchjointventure.org...

Oo and I just found this exciting site! http://www.plantmilkweed.org/ It includes links to sources by state.

Welcome to ATP Terri.

to ATP Terri! And thanks for those great links!

Terri, nice to meet you.

Wonderful links! Thanks for those! And

Welcome to ATP Terri and THANK YOU so much for those great links that contain some valuable information!!

Great links, Terri! Thanks!