Milkweeds, garden design and monarchs
Have you ever wondered which milkweed is really recommended for our home landscapes? There are only a 100 species across the United States to select, but the best is Asclepias speciosa or Showy milkweed. One word of caution is that Showy milkweed does need space because it is considered one of the tillering species of Asclepias.
Showy milkweed grows 1.5-3 feet tall with blue-green pubescent or hairy leaves producing flower clusters or umbels of star-like rose-colored to purple flowers in the upper axils of the stem. It grows best in full sun with moist, well-drained soil that can be course, medium or fine. Its native habitat ranges from dry to moist savannas, prairies, roadsides, old fields and meadows, according to Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center.
The plant has a milky sap when you break the stem or if the stem is injured in some way. This milky sap is a latex and, except for Asclepias tuberosa, is found as a characteristic of milkweeds. This sap containing toxins is a defense mechanism for the plant to make the leaves unpalatable. This plant serves as a host for monarchs while hummingbirds and other butterflies feed off the nectar.
Other milkweeds to add to your home landscape can be those with nonaggressive root systems, which are as follows:
1. Asclepias incarnata or Swamp milkweed, which is a native perennial growing 3-4 feet tall in full sun and consistently moist soils. Flowering in July through August, its blossoms are pale pink to rose purple. Suggested cultivars are “Cinderella” with pink to dark pink reflexed petals and pink to white crowns. “Ice Ballet” is a white-flowering cultivar. “Soulmate” has deep rose-pink flowers. For further reading, visit: https://www.extension.iastate.edu/news/yard-and-garden-all-about-milkweed.
2. Asclepias tuberosa or Butterfly weed, which is a perennial that grows 1-3 feet tall in full sun and soil that is average, well-drained soil with dry to medium moisture. It does well in poor dry soils and tolerates drought.
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