Milkweed, Common (Asclepias syriaca) seeds

$3.95$31.10

Family:  Milkweed (Asclepiadaceae)

Hardy to Zones 3 to 8

Herbaceous perennial native to North America.  This is standard midwestern ditch milkweed that nonetheless has some of the prettiest, baseball-sized flower clusters you’ll see anywhere, giving off a heady perfume that is like the bosom of Madame Bovary. Big monarch attractor and butterfly food and habitat. Although the spring shoots are said to be edible, too much can prove toxic, due to the presence of cardioactive glycosides.  Source of fiber.  Plant prefers full sun and dry to mesic soils.  Grows happily in poor soil or waste places.  Sow seed in early spring.  Cool soil germinator.  Strew seeds on disturbed soil in spring, rake in and tamp, then watch the magic happen!  In careful culture, plant in beds or in flats or pots–barely cover seed and tamp thoroughly, then keep evenly moist until germination.  Thin or transplant to 1 foot apart.

Packet contains 30 seeds
1 g contains ~300 seeds
5 g contains ~1,500 seeds
10 g contains ~3,000 seeds

Open Pollinated, Untreated, NO GMO’s

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  1. Question

    France Rowland

    I have tried growing milkweed from seeds and have not had any success at it. A friend suggested growing from a live plant but I don’t see those on the website. Do you plan to have them at some time, or do you have advice on increasing my chances of success growing from seed? Thank you!

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    • 3 out of 3 people found this helpful
      Richo Cech

      Richo Cech

      Hi France,
      People think common weeds should be the easiest thing to grow and are surprised when it doesn’t work. Not me. I understand that wild seeds contain germination inhibiting compounds that help time their emergence according to season. That means a seed like this planted in warm soil (garden or greenhouse conditions) probably won’t germinate until the next vernal cycle. That means it will overwinter and germinate in the spring. Early spring germination helps these plants survive because there is less competition at that time of year from grasses and summer weeds. Sow seed in early spring.  Cool soil germinator.  Strew seeds on disturbed soil in spring, rake in and tamp, then watch the magic happen!  In careful culture, plant in beds or in flats or pots–barely cover seed and tamp thoroughly, then keep evenly moist until germination.  Thin or transplant to 1 foot apart.

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    • Renee Johnson

      But don’t they typically spread via rhizomes?

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    • Richo Cech

      Richo Cech

      these are rhizomatous once established

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  2. One person found this helpful
    Richo Cech

    Admin Richo Cech

    Milkweed (Asclepias syriaca) pods, crying milk of the Earth. Monarch butterflies love them, and so do children, who never tire of playing with the plant (at least, I never did), breaking a stem to observe the copious white milk pour out, removing a flower to suck the sugary nectar, opening the pods to reveal the silk parachutes with their precious payloads of gemplasm. . . Many have tried to utilize the plant over the centuries, touting the young shoots as an asparagus-like wild edible, using the silk to make paper, using the mature stalks as cordage, making a sunblock out of the seed extract–but in the end, it is somehow reassuring simply to have the plant around. It is from here, and despite the efforts of highway departments to eradicate it, will always be here, especially if we keep a little patch in our gardens. This plant can remind us that life is beautiful, whether it be the life of a plant, or the life of a human. Many have forgotten this simple truth. Maybe that’s why Milkweed cries.

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    • 2 out of 2 people found this helpful

      Tyna Bianca

      I know milkweed to be good for getting rid of moles on ones skin. It’s a native American cure as I know it. The milk that comes from the plant is put in the mole to shrink it. I have used it and it works!

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