I love Asclepias! (as KLEEP i ahs) Their common name is butterfly weed. Not to be confused with butterfly bush which is Buddleia. Above is tuberous, the species, a form of milkweed plant. This plant is a perennial here and grows to about 2 feet high. Small flowers are clustered together on strong stems blooming for 3 months! Love it for bouquets.
Cinderalla, a perennial here, is a pink version on 3 foot plants. The flowers of all the perennials are vanilla scented. Asclepias are one of the last plants to emerge in the spring...very late. When you are doing your fall clean-up, leave plenty of stem material in place as your 'marker' for spring.
Above is 'Gay Butterflies.' It comes in a variety of yellows, reds & oranges. It is hardy to zone 5-6 but not in Minnesota. You can grow them as annuals, more worthy than a petunia I say. All of the Asclepias attract butterflies, especially monarchs!
This is Asclepias gomphocarpus. Very unusal seed pods. I use these stems either in flower, which is white, or these ping pong ball size pods. I dried some over winter and they held up fairly well! This is an annual plant here. I started from seed last year, and is reached 3-4 feet by the end of the season.
'Hello Yellow." This is a cute yellow version. These perennial plants get 2' tall & they flower over a 3 month period! Earthworks will have Hello Yellow and the orange at the top of the page for sale this spring.
Care of perennial Asclepias:
Plant in full sun
average to low water
leaner soil (do not enrich)
very carefree -easy to establish
do not move plants as they are tap-rooted - home for life please!
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