University of Maryland Extension: Plant of the Week
Photo credit: Ellen Nibali
Butterfly weed
Asclepias tuberose
Butterflies, hummingbirds, and bees flock to this midsummer perennial flower. Besides brilliant orange, its clusters of tiny flowers come in yellow or red-orange, and leaves are a favorite food of the monarch butterfly caterpillar.
After blooming, flowers turn into long seed capsules like small milkweed pods which are attractive in dried arrangements. Left on the plant, they split open and release feathery white fluffs blown away on the wind, each carrying one seed.
Long-lived, this native of meadows and plains prefers full sun and tolerates drought and most soils except very wet ones. Butterfly weed is slow to emerge in spring, so mark its location to prevent accidental damage.
--Ellen Nibali, University of Maryland Extension
Comments
Great to use as a cover crop. Lawns, be gone.
Posted by: Michelle Brown | August 31, 2010 7:31 AM