My Giant Swan, Swan and Tropical MW in my garage that I over-wintered are starting to throw out some green. All told between the three, I have ~ 30 plants I grew from seed last year. Since these are all well established plants, I will have a real leg up.

I also have cuttings in my basement of Tropical. My Swan and Giant Swan cuttings rotted.

Also have a ton of seeds in CMS in the fridge. Will start the seed in early April in my basement under lights.

David,

I've never had luck attempting to root Swan milkweed. It won't even hold up well in water for me when I use it to feed Monarch cats. The cuttings wilt so quickly but the little leaves are so supple and thin, they make wonderful baby food for the Monarch cats during their first Instars.

Sounds like you've got a great head start on the season.

Myles

Bonehead said:I have never had any luck with milkweeds. Does anyone know of a variety that might thrive in my Zone 8 Pacific NW garden?

You might consider trying A perennis. It isn't native to your area; native range is SE states but I would think it might do well in your area.

What I adore about this little milkweed is the size and the long bloom time. It will bloom like crazy the first year, too, and does well in a pot. Just don't allow it to dry out. Size is about 12 to 18 inches, with almost pure white blooms. The buds usually have a touch of pink to them before opening. This MW also sets seed easily and is greatly admired by all the little pollinators. The seed does require cold stratification.


7 week old plant setting first flower buds




mature plant with blooms later in the season



plant information:
https://www.wildflower.org/pla...

Myles

When members are vague about their location it makes difficult to advise them. Assuming Pacific NW means Oregon/Washington, very few Asclepias species have either state in their native range. A. speciosa is the only one widespread in either state, and appears to not like coastal areas. Apparently this genus is not fond of the Pacific NW climate, suggesting Asclepias may be a poor selection for cultivation. A more specific location for the member would be very helpful.

Agree with Myles that A. perennis is a rewarding plant to grow. (at least for me)

A. perennis is very hard to find, in both seeds and plants

Don't know why, but several Asclepias species that had been available just a few years ago have become rare as hen's teeth, A. perennis being one of them. With that availability issue in mind, I would like to spread the news that Everwilde Farms now has A. purpurea seeds in stock after an absence of several years. Pricey though, 10 seeds for $2.50.
http://www.everwilde.com/store...

Due to a host of interferences, I did not manage to collect pods from my A. perennis this past season, or I would offer some.

Personally, I am engaged in a never-ending search for some seeds of A. longifolia, quadifolia, rubra, and variegata. If anyone can direct me to a source for any of these I would be very grateful.

General demand for Milkweed is increasing exponentially. For example, seed that was "just a few years ago" 200 - 300 $ a pound is now 500 + a pound.

This is due to interest in general as well as Federal and state programs. Supply is NOT keeping up.

A major problem is that harvesting MW seed is not easy - not very amenable to mechanization.

Were I 40 years younger, I would buy 40 acres and remove all grain crops entirely and plant Milkweed.

Too bad the Feds do not offer up some incentives like they have done to get farmers to plant more corn - the ethanol mandates! Those BTW have been one of the reasons Monarchs are NOT fairring well as Fed incentives even allowed CRP land to be "reclaimed" and planted in corn.

Aside from being a Monarchist, I am an old farm boy as well.

Hi all:

Just checking in so I can follow the thread. I'm starting over in a new garden - this is only my second season. I left a lot behind at the old garden. It broke my heart, but I brought all of my shrubs and as many perennials as I could get. I wonder what is going on back there while they try to get my butterfly meadow to go back to green grass.

I've got A. incarnata and A. exalta cooling in the fridge to sow soon. Also will start loads of tropical MW and A./G. physocarpus for a nonprofit organization's plant sale. I've got common MW and the exalta in the ground, but I have a lot of catching up to do!

A.

Good to see you, Amanda! I can't even think about when I'll have to move out of my parents' house and leave the garden behind. I'll need lots of emotional support. Sending you lots of

been there, done that on the moving, though it's always been roughly the same zone.... then I moved from 5 to 9. Huge change. but it's fun learning new plants and the Do's and Don'ts.

Still small, but I have at least three A. curassavicas returning from last year. And in the 'I'll believe it when I see it' category, I have a Whorled MW (A. verticillata) and a Swamp MW (A. incarnata) that appear to be returning. They never did much last year so I thought they were dead. One was in the ground and one in a pot. So either they've both decided to grow or have been replaced by some migrant seeds. Stay tuned.

Good Luck Joan!!

Most of my Swamp MW in pots has come back for two years now. Waiting for this year's emergence. Have also overwintered Common in small pots which appeared dead with no surface pop up stems. When I went to move the 4" pot I couldn't because the rhizomes had found their way out of the drainage holes, resulting in seven new clones. I love that the way of the Common Milkweed is to form clonal colonies around each mother plant...more like establishing a beachhead/ base camp of milkweed resource!
I also love the prayerful position of the leaves as the stem emerges each spring, like the Yoga Salute to the Sun. (Leaves don't open until several sets have emerged.)

Joan, for the most part, . it does take my Swamp starts a year to get going.

Any one know how long lived various Milkweeds are?

Hi Judy!~ The Monarch Butterfly Garden website will tell you anything you want to know about milkweed. I've been a member with them for years and there is just loads of information there! They'll know what you want to know! Tony is a peach!.. http://monarchbutterflygarden....
You can find them on Facebook also! Have a beautiful day! #HelpSaveTheMonarch

I've got Milkweed, a Monarch & Eggs. On April 9 in St. Joseph MO.

See this post:

https://garden.org/thread/view...

Do we have any members growing milkweed in Maine? We have a new member from Maine who has field(s) of milkweed and this year she and her neighbors are not seeing any Monarchs. They have seen them in the past. She also says that they are seeing other butterflies but not Monarchs.

Any thoughts?

It may be a bit too soon for Maine. I'm in PA and very rarely see Monarchs until much later in the summer. Just a thought

@luvsgrtdanes - forgot to mention that the lack of Monarchs has been going on for about 6 years now. Wonder what their flight path is.

I think you're right. I just checked out a migration map at http://www.learner.org/jnorth/...

First monarch for me this year was June 8. It was on Veronica spicata 'Royal Candles' (Royal Candles speedwell) briefly before flying away.

I brought Milkweed (Asclepias) with us when we moved a year ago but it's been slow growing and I haven't seen many Monarch's around so far this year. First Monarch sighting in my garden this year was March 6th, as one visited the Pentas blooms:


Second sighting was two months later on May 8th, visiting Pentas and then Porterweed ... no sightings since.