The 2 Best Milkweeds for Your Butterfly Garden!

[@BackyardEcology]

What are your experiences with butterfly garden milkweeds? Let us know in the comments! To learn about the wildlife and pollinator benefits of milkweed beyond those it has for the monarch butterfly check out this video: kzbin.info/www/bejne/ZpTHZoGfobeeY6c

[@katewithat]

Very helpful….I didn’t realize Rose and Swamp Milkweeds are the same. Thanks!

[@BackyardEcology]

Glad it was helpful!

[@noraalvarado8178]

Just found your channel. Removed alot of the grass last year and made a huge butterfly garden. Swamp Milkweed did great. I started seeds very early in the winter along with other milkweed but the Swamp grew the fastest and produced flowers and seed first year. Raised alot of monarchs with it.

[@BackyardEcology]

Sounds like you have been busy! Swamp milkweed is one of the easier milkweeds to get established and I recommend it to anyone who lives in its native range.

[@trustinnatureltd.7311]

I would really like to see a video on how y'all use common milkweed in habitat management projects.

[@patriciabeckeryoga]

Excellent High quality video about the "butterfly plant" Thank you.

[@BackyardEcology]

Thank you! Glad you liked it!

[@LanNguyen-nt4rg]

I wished I found this video earlier on in my native planting journey. I came to the same conclusion as this video, but only after finding some very aggressive milkweeds.

[@BackyardEcology]

It is a common thing with milkweeds. Many get common milkweed for their small garden and then find out you end up with a small garden of common milkweed!

[@frenchpotato2852]

Asclepsis tuburosa is the best for small gardens and gardens with you kids and pets. Butterfly weed is NOT AS toxic as other milkweed, hence its name not having the name milk, when you break it, it secretes a clear liquid instead of a milky liquid

[@tabithasherie3279]

I appreciate the details and research of your content! I discovered the genus of silphium last year, finding this group of plants amazing and highly adaptable to our changing climate, plus pollinators love them in addition to the beauty they bring to the garden. Would love a deep dive showcasing the incredible silphium family ☺️

[@BackyardEcology]

Silphiums are awesome plants though some are too aggressive for the garden and much better suited to large scale plantings. Stay tuned for a future video on them!

[@zephyrkhambatta]

That was great brother thanks. When we move to a country with more open spaces like that, we'll keep this in mind. :)

[@BackyardEcology]

You are welcome! Milkweed of some type is a must have in any pollinator garden.

[@oscarflip8561]

I’ve heard a lot of people say asclepias tuberosa is hard to grow, but it was one of the first plants I ever grew from seed in my garden, I live in Wyoming, and it actually does pretty well here. There are a lot of species of asclepias in the southwest U.S that are really cool but aren’t commonly offered in cultivation such as; asclepias Welshii, Asclepias albicans, Asclepias eastwoodiana, Asclepias asperula, and Asclepias cryptoceras(I find this one especially interesting, blue green foliage with creamy yellow petals and blood red hoods). Many of these are rare, and in some cases narrow endemics, so I understand why they aren’t offered in cultivation, but one can dream, right?

[@BackyardEcology]

I think a lot of the butterfly weed being hard to grow comes from transplanting stock into the field. It can be a little touchy when its roots are disturbed. Started from seed in the ground it generally does well. I find it fairly easy to grow from seed. There are tons of cool Asclepias species that are not offered for sale.

[@moplantdaddy]

I love butterfly milkweed! I knew it would be one of the 2 😫

[@BackyardEcology]

It is an awesome plant!

[@lesliew87]

I’d like a video on the definition of native! I started my garden last year and my butterfly milkweed is really struggling… I hope it grows some this year. I’m also hoping it’s just because it’s a brand new garden and by year three some of these plants will take off. I’ve got to contend with lots of rabbits and my lawn mower though. They’ve both taken out quite a few plants. I’m trying to brainstorm some nice, sustainable, and cheap ideas for edging too though which would probably help the lawn mowers.

[@BackyardEcology]

It takes some native plants a bit to really get going. First they sleep, then they creep, and finally they leap is a saying often used about native plants. You can often find someone giving away materials that work well for edging - blocks, rocks, brick, etc.

[@jameslomenzo1139]

I planted the Butterfly milk weed from seed in full sun a few years ago,and it's doing great. Bought 2 plants of 1ft swamp this year and it's doing great.

[@BackyardEcology]

Awesome!

[@FiveCanadianAcres]

Very informative video! I have butterfly milkweed seeds but haven't started any yet. I will get some going this year, I'm always looking to add pollinator friendly things around the garden :)

[@BackyardEcology]

You will love them! Very tough plants once established.

[@valeriajimenez0712]

Amazing thank you for this info! 💖

[@BackyardEcology]

Glad it was helpful!

[@GoldenLife-uq2ms]

LOVE your clips! I learn something every time I tune in. Well done!

[@BackyardEcology]

Awesome, thank you!

[@cherrillstockmann6590]

This is so helpful for me! Thanks so much to each of you for sharing 💛

[@BackyardEcology]

You are welcome! Glad you are enjoying the content!

[@the_linguist_ll]

Have some Asclepias syriaca and Asclepias incarnata seeds from the Wild Seed Project I’m getting ready to start in pots in November (or later if we get a lousy winter like last year) which I’ll be putting everywhere

[@Antarctica2025]

I Ammon my fourth year at my community PG, snd the A. tuberosa Plants have reached maturity, and I have a dozen beautiful plants this year. Swamp MW too is one of my favorite milkweeds!

[@BackyardEcology]

That is awesome!

[@KishorTwist]

Hey, I got both orange and red milkweed! Even the common spreading variety, in a pot thankfully! My orange one surprised me with a mid-summer 2nd and probably last flower flush! 🎊

[@BackyardEcology]

Nice!

[@robertsmith5745]

I would like to know what you consider native plants . Bowling Green, Ky. Thanks. Really enjoy your posts.

[@BackyardEcology]

There is no official definition of what a native plant is - some call it native if its from the same region or state. I think that is a little too broad. Take KY for instance, it is a very long state east to west and goes from flat river bottom to mountains from west to east. There is a great difference in the plant communities as you cross the state. I try to plant things that are known to have been native in the area I am planting at the time of settlement. It can be tough as some plants were wiped out or rare by the time anyone did a plant survey so it can take a bit of research to figure out what would have been growing in an area.

[@AnnaNeri-q3h]

What ate these plants used for apartfeom butterflies

[@BackyardEcology]

In what way? They are used by a wide variety of pollinators and other insects.

[@LibbysBackyardWildlifeHabitat]

Great video!

[@BackyardEcology]

Thanks!

[@Amshatelia88]

Great video! Any tips on seed starting? I have collected some wild seeds as well and would love any advice!

[@BackyardEcology]

Which species of milkweed did you collect? They can vary as to how they need to be dealt with.

[@Amshatelia88]

@@BackyardEcology honestly I'm not sure! Either common milkweed or swamp milkweed looked the closest, it popped up in an open field near my house.

[@BackyardEcology]

@@Amshatelia88 very good chance it is common milkweed. Were the seedpods large and bumpy?

[@Amshatelia88]

@@BackyardEcology yes they were! So common milkweed pods are wider than swamp milkweed pods?

[@BackyardEcology]

@@Amshatelia88 Yes, the common milkweed pods are much larger and also much rougher/bumpier. The seed pods of swamp milkweed are quite thin and smooth. They remind me of a small okra pod. Common milkweed is best for meadow plantings or BIG pollinator gardens as it can spread rapidly by rhizomes and take over.

[@sylviedalcourt500]

Can I plant butterfly milkweed in sand mixed with soil or am I better to grow it jn a planter and transplant after?

[@BackyardEcology]

Butterfly milkweed likes well drained soil so it should do well in a sand mix. It does not like to have its roots disturbed so it is best to plant it where you are wanting it to grow.

[@FredQuann-vs1qh]

Thank for all the info.

[@mrsunshine63755]

Nice

[@jeffduster8084]

Swamp is great for monarchs, but the plant is entirely too weak if your goal is a sustainable butterfly garden. Swamp is very rough looking by mid July (so the last generation of monarchs tends to avoid it entirely), and is also a favorite food for rabbits. If you have rabbits, swamp isn't going to work (trust me...I've been battling this issue for two years). This will be my last year with swamp. I have already replaced it in a good chunk of my gardens with common. If your goal is solely a butterfly garden...grow common...it's a beast of a plant (that the rabbits actually do avoid) and if it gets nipped it just comes back stronger...Swamp doesn't do that (since it's an early secessional with a fibrous root system). Butterfly weed is also an excellent choice because the last generation of monarchs prefers it due to the fact that it keeps it's integrity longer. Hope this is helpful to someone. Swamp...great plant...but too weak.

[@BackyardEcology]

While you may be experiencing trouble growing swamp milkweed, I know many people who have grown it for years with no trouble. When planted in an area it likes it is as hardy as common and butterfly. Even here in southern KY swamp milkweed looks great until the fall if it is in a spot it likes. Common milkweed with its rhizomatous manner of spreading can be far to aggressive in smaller butterfly gardens - unless you just want a solid patch of common milkweed.

[@DMSATL]

How is it possible that swamp milkweed grows in every state that borders Mississippi but NOT Mississippi??

[@BackyardEcology]

It is considered rare in LA and AR, and isn't shown as being recorded near the MS border. There are confirmed populations in SW TN near the MS border. Overall swamp milkweed is spotty over the deep south except for FL. Could be it has just never been recorded officially in MS or the soils and local conditions aren't really suitable for it to grow in the wild.