Pictured above:Florida milkweed (Asclepias feayi) by Kate Dolamore. Click on terms for botanical definitions. View post as a PDF.
Florida milkweed (Asclepias feayi) is a dainty endemic at home in the sandhills and scrubby flatwoods of central and south Florida. It emerges from winter dormancy in spring and typically blooms mid-summer. The species epithet feayi honors physician and botanist William T. Feay.
A thin herbaceous stem bears few long slender opposite leaves. Terminal flower heads contain ten or fewer white flowers with a little purple in their upright coronas. Unlike most milkweeds, the five corollas are not reflexed, giving the flowers a star-like appearance.
Photo by Kate Dolamore
Photo by Kate Dolamore
Like all members of the Asclepias genus, Florida milkweed is a larval host plant for Monarch, Queen and Soldier butterflies. The plant contains a milky latex that is toxic to most animals, but Monarch, Queen and Soldier caterpillars are adapted to feed on them despite the chemical defense.
Family: Apocynaceae (Dogbane family) Native range: Central to south Florida. To see where natural populations of Florida milkweed have been vouchered, visit florida.plantatlas.usf.edu. Lifespan: Perennial Soil: Well-drained sand Exposure: Full sun Growth habit: Up to 2 feet
Florida milkweed is not commercially available. Visit a natural area to see it.
For information on other Asclepiasspecies, see these resources:
Clasping milkweed (Asclepias amplexicaulis) is a late spring- through summer- blooming milkweed that occurs in dry sandy areas from sandhills to pine savannahs, open woodlands and fallow fields.
Fewflower milkweed (Asclepias lanceolata) is a delicate wildflower found in swamps and moist to wet pinelands and prairies throughout Florida. Its stunning orange flowers typically bloom late spring through fall.
Swamp milkweed (Asclepias perennis) blooms in late spring through early fall and attracts many pollinators. It is a larval host plant for Monarch, Queen and Soldier butterflies.
Swamp milkweed (Asclepias incarnata) has showy pink flowers that typically bloom in summer and attracts many pollinators. It is a larval host for Monarch, Queen and Soldier butterflies.
With its diminutive stature and greenish-yellow flowers, Savannah milkweed (Asclepias pedicellata) is oft overlooked in its native pineland and prairie habitats. It blooms late spring through fall, peaking in summer. Its flowers are attractive to bees, wasps and butterflies. Like all members of the Asclepias genus, Savannah milkweed is a larval host plant for Monarch, Queen and Soldier butterflies. The plant contains a milky latex that is toxic to most animals, but Monarch, Queen and Soldier caterpillars are adapted to feed on them despite the chemical defense.
Green antelopehorn (Asclepiasviridis) is an herbaceous perennial wildflower found in pinelands, pine rocklands and disturbed areas in a few Florida counties. It flowers winter through summer, with peak blooms in spring. Like many members of the milkweed family, Green antelopehorn is a larval host plant for Monarch, Queen and Soldier butterflies. Their caterpillars have adapted to feed on the plant, which contains a milky latex that is toxic to most animals. The flowers are also an important nectar source for bees and wasps.
Longleaf milkweed (Aslcepias longifolia) typically blooms in spring. It is a larval host for Monarch and Queen butterflies, and an important nectar source for bees and wasps.
Pinewoods milkweed (Asclepias humistrata) blooms in spring and summer, attracting many pollinators including wasps and butterflies. It is a larval host for Monarch and Queen butterflies.
Whorled milkweed (Asclepias verticillata) is one of the smaller, more delicate native milkweeds and is easily overlooked when not in bloom. It flowers late spring through late summer/early fall.
Largeflower milkweed (Asclepias connivens) is a perennial wildflower found throughout much of Florida. Its conspicuous flowers appear in late spring through summer in moist pine flatwoods, savannahs and bogs.
Butterfly milkweed (Asclepias tuberosa) is a perennial that produces large, showy clusters of bright orange to reddish flowers from spring through fall. It occurs naturally in sandhills, pine flatwoods, and other sandy uplands as well as along sunny roadsides. It is an exception to the Asclepias genus in that its stem does not contain the milky latex that distinguishes the rest of the genus and gives it the common name “milkweed.”
