Asclepias tuberosa is a clump-forming wildflower with attractive, lance-shaped, dark green leaves. Mature plants will produce several hairy, erect stems that are branched in their upper portion. These flowering stalks will grow to a height of 3', and are topped with several dense clusters (umbels) of flowers that are typically orange, but can range in color from shades of yellow to shades of red. The ensuing seed pods are elliptical, up to 6" long, and seem over-sized for the plant. They are very ornamental in their own right, and are often used in dried flower arrangements. At maturity, these pods split open from the center, and release dozens of winged seeds. Silky threads are attached to each seed, and although the seeds seem large, the threads act like sails and allow them to be easily carried by the wind.
The native range of Asclepias tuberosa is extensive, and encompasses the eastern half of the US, and then some. It produces a tuberous taproot, making the plant drought tolerant and well adapted to poor, sandy, and rocky soils. It is easy to grow in typical garden conditions, the only soil requirement is that it should be well-drained. It does best in a bright location, in full to part-sun. Bloom period is from early to mid-summer, with an occasional secondary bloom period from late summer to early fall. Flowers are long-lived. Both cold hardy, and heat tolerant: zones 4-10
Space plants 12"-18" on center.
Butterfly milkweed is best planted in groups because clumps are slow to form, and self-seeded plants will take years to reach flowering maturity. Spacing plants closely will achieve coverage more quickly.
For companion plants, consider combining Asclepia tuberosa with: Sporobolus heterolepis (prairie dropseed), Schizachyrium scoparium (little bluestem) or its cultivars, and for a short grass try Eragrostis spectabilis (purple lovegrass). Good options for flowering herbaceous perennials (forbs) include: Rudbeckia fulgida (orange coneflower) or the compact, floriforous cultivar Rudbeckia fulgida var. deamii 'American Gold Rush', Coreopsis verticillata (whorled tickseed) or its cultivars, Oenothera fruticosa (narrowleaf evening primrose), Pycnanthemum flexuosum (Appalachian mountainmint), Liatris aspera (tall blazing star), and for a fall bloomer of comperable stature try one of the shorter, sun-loving Symphyotrichum spp. (asters) or cultivars.
Asclepias tuberosa will attract a variety of pollinators, including bees and butterflies, and is a larval host for the monarch butterfly. It can also be considered deer resistant.
The roots have long been known to ease pulmonary ailments, hence the alternate common name: pleurisy root. However, they shouldn't be considered edible, and are even toxic if ingested in large quantity.
The genus common name Milkweed is somewhat of a misnomer when it comes to A. tuberosa, because the stems do not produce the milky sap typical of other species within the genus.
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Recorded County Distribution: USDA data.
AL, AR, CT, DC, DE, GA, IA, IL, IN, KS, KY, MA, MD, ME, MI, MN, MO, MS, NC, NE, NH, NJ, NY, OH, OK, PA, RI, SC, SD, TN, VA, VT, WI, WV, AZ, CA, CO, FL, LA, NM, TX, UT |
Endangered | NH |
Exploitably Vulnerable | NY |
Possibly Extirpated | ME |
Special Concern | RI |
Threatened | VT |
MAP OF WETLAND DELINEATION REGIONS
Code |
Status |
Designation |
Comment |
OBL |
Obligate Wetland |
Hydrophyte |
Almost always occur in wetlands |
FACW |
Facultative Wetland |
Hydrophyte |
Usually occur in wetlands, but may occur in non-wetlands |
FAC |
Facultative |
Hydrophyte |
Occur in wetlands and non-wetlands |
FACU |
Facultative Upland |
Nonhydrophyte |
Usually occur in non-wetlands, but may occur in wetlands |
UPL |
Obligate Upland |
Nonhydrophyte |
Almost never occur in wetlands |
Kingdom | Plantae | Plants |
Subkingdom | Tracheobionta | Vascular plants |
Superdivision | Spermatophyta | Seed plants |
Division | Magnoliophyta | Flowering plants |
Class | Magnoliopsida | Dicotyledons |
Subclass | Asteridae | |
Order | Gentianales | |
Family | Asclepiadaceae | Milkweed family |
Genus | Asclepias | milkweed |
Species | Asclepias tuberosa | butterfly milkweed |
butterfly weed, pleurisy root
Asclepias decumbens
Sizes info
Shipping is free on all plants orders!
Your plants will ship using each grower’s preferred method: FedEx Ground, UPS Ground, or Spee-Dee Ground (in select midwestern states). Our growers ship orders Monday through Wednesday. The farther your plants need to travel, the earlier in the week they will ship. The goal is to have all plants delivered by the end of the week.
Shipping plugs:
Plugs are shipped in full flats, sometimes also referred to as trays. Multiple flats can be shipped in a single box. The flats are wrapped in netting or craft paper to secure the plants, and spacers are used between flats to keep the plants from being crushed.
When you unpack your plugs, the plants will have been somewhat flattened by the netting or craft paper. They will straighten out within a couple of days. You may also gently “fluff” them a bit to speed up the process. In some cases, your plants might have been cut back before packing, if the grower deemed them to have become too tall for safe packaging. Don’t worry, though, these guys know what they’re doing and would not compromise the health of the plants. They’ll fill back in in no time.
After receiving your plants’ journey in a dark box, it will be important to acclimate them to sunlight again. Over a couple of days, you should gradually move them into their preferred light exposure, and water them as per their requirement.
Although we always recommend putting your plants in the ground as soon as possible, they can stay healthy in the flats for a considerable amount of time. The key is to respect their growing requirements: if the species requires full sun, do not store them in the shade. If it is best adapted to dry soil, do not over-water.
Planting plugs:
We consider plugs ready to ship when the plants’ roots have filled the entire liner cell and the plants can easily be pulled out. In some cases you will have to go about it gently, wiggling the plant by the crown, and possibly squeezing the bottom of the liner to compress the growing medium and release the roots. Other times, the plants will appear to be root bound. They are not in the traditional sense. The plants are healthy but they have used up all the growing medium available to them. Plugs are at an aggressive stage of growth. As soon as planted the roots will immediately expand into your native soil. They establish faster than plants in larger containers, because they don’t have the luxury of a lot of growing media that can inhibit the roots from venturing outside of their comfort zone.
We are not going to address area preparation because the process can be complex and is always site-specific. However, as a rule, we recommend disturbing the soil as little as possible, and we do not recommend amending the soil. If you chose the right plant for the right conditions they will thrive. Any disturbance and amendments will only encourage weeds to emerge that never had a chance to do so before.
Installing plugs cannot be easier: dig a hole large enough for the roots to fit snugly inside, then water them in to eliminate air gaps. We recommend using a soil knife, sometimes referred to as hori hori, or a drill-adapted auger if it’s a large installation. If you use an auger, you will need a powerful drill. Depending on the size of the project and the type of soil, the process can be beyond what an average drill will bear. Mulching is recommended after installation to help keep weeds down while the plants establish. Be sure to keep it away from the crown of the plants. For large projects, you may want to mulch the area before planting, rather than tiptoeing through it after the fact. As a side note: if you are installing plugs in the fall, you might want to plant them so that the crown is about ¾” lower than the surrounding soil. The winter’s freeze/thaw cycles can push plugs out if the roots did not have enough time to establish and anchor them in.