40 Asclepias syriaca common MILKWEED Virginia Silkweed - BUTTERFLY FLOWER SEED - Zone 3a - 9b ~!! Monarch Butterfly LOVES It
~ ~ ~ WE OFFER BOTH PKT. & BULK SIZES ~ ~ ~Asclepias syriaca - Common Milkweed, Butterfly flower, Silkweed, Silky Swallow-wort, Virginia Silkweed Wildflower Seeds A familiar and friendly wildflower, Common Milkweed spreads aggressively, and will delight the nectar-loving Monarch Butterflies with its soft pink blooms. A good choice for your large butterfly garden or wildflower meadow! Origin: US Native Other Common Names: Duration: Perennial Bloom Time: Summer Height: 36" to 48" Spacing: 18" to 24" Light: Full Sun to Part Shade Soil Moisture: Medium to Dry USDA Zone: 3a-9b Germination: No pre-treatment needed. Sow seeds on soil surface at 70F and water. Slow to germinate. The flowers are grouped in several spherical umbels with numerous flowers in each umbel. The individual flowers are small, 1-2 cm diameter, perfumed, with five cornate hoods. The seeds are attached to long, white flossy hairs and encased in large follicles. The plant's latex contains large quantities of glycosides, making the leaves and seed pods toxic for sheep and other large mammals, and potentially humans (though large quantities of the foul-tasting parts would need to be eaten). The young shoots, young leaves, flower buds and immature fruits are all edible raw. Concerns about milkweed bitterness and toxicity can be traced back to Euell Gibbons, author of Stalking the Wild Asparagus (1962). It is theorized that Gibbons inadvertently prepared dogbane (Apocynum cannabinum), a poisonous look-alike instead. He devised a method to remove the bitterness and toxicity by plunging the young shoots into boiling water (not cold) and cooking for one minute, repeating the procedure at least three times to make the plant safe to eat.