I'm guessing you have lots of predators that are eliminating the caterpillars before you can find them. There is a big field by me full of common milkweed. Easier to find monarch cats there earlier in the summer because later in the summer, the plants are crawling with predators. Years ago at my first house, I watched mama monarch laying eggs on numerous plants while I did yard work. I went to collect the eggs some hours later and they were gone. My memory is I thought little spiders were the culprit. Anyway, that taught me to grab them as soon as mama monarch has left the area (don't want to bother her while she is working). In my 40+ years of looking for monarch cats, I've had much better luck finding them on plants that were basically by themselves. An example would be 2 or 3 milkweed plants that sprung up in a parking lot. Predators aren't there because prey is scarce. Unfortunately, you don't find those parking lot milkweeds these days. I think that is because in the '70s, you had to pull or cut the weeds but these days the landscape crew nails them with a weedwhacker or RoundUp.

Hi Ravenclaw, first of all that isn’t syriaca, it’s tuberosa. Second you really shouldn’t put it in a pot, they like the ground much better. It also helps with hardiness, not that that’s really an issue. Last, it’s fall; it’s not dying, it’s just going dormant. Cut it off at ground level after it goes completely brown and I will come back up in the spring. Don’t give up on it if it doesn’t come up early. I had some that didn’t come up until mid June this year.

I've had common milkweed growing in the yard for years, and start a lot of plants from seed, and still can't figure out how to reliably grow it from seedlings. But it does like to self-sow, and grow in random places in the gardens. In the middle of paths, the middle of the annuals, the middle of the beets, along the edge of the driveway. Then as it gets bigger, it sends out runners and spreads where it feels like. The most vigorous patch in my yard is growing in the middle of mature Sedum and Allium right next to the front door. I did not plant it there! It sowed itself. I am planning to thin out the Sedum this Spring and let the milkweed do its thing. So, now I pretty much let it grow wherever it sows itself. It also might do well through direct sowing - scattering seed where you hope to get it established. Asclepias syriaca is not a very well behaved garden plant for those who like orderly beds, but this doesn't bother me and it attracts a lot of Monarchs to the yard.

Nikki, I received the milkweed seeds yesterday. Thanks for including the instructions...they're off to the refrigerator for a month's visit. I put your seeds in the mail a few days ago so you should be receiving them any day. John