Someone posted a picture of VB seedlings in the "Growing from seed" forum; here's the thread. You could try and sow A. curassavica now, but I'm unsure if you'd get it to bloom or not, since it's an annual. Then again, my A. curassavica a few years ago bloomed in October, much later than the perennial milkweeds which were long done for the season. Luckily frost hadn't gotten it. You could definitely direct sow the perennial asclepias now, probably wouldn't bloom this year but would next year. I have very high germination when winter sowing annual and perennial asclepias. You could definitely direct sow the VB now; I have plenty of seedlings emerging (no pics though) from reseeding.

I think this is one of those plants that really needs to be in the right setting (which is different for everyone, of course!). Last year I got a potful of this from the swap, and absolutely LOVED it! It lived in its pot in the driveway all year (as do most of my plants, lol) and was so full and beautiful. I just had to have more. So, I winter-sowed some this past spring, and thought it would look nice interplanted with my Lyda Rose rose. Well, I made two mistakes. One, I planted it too far in front, as opposed to behind or even in amongst the rose, and two, I planted too sparsely. While it bloomed well (and made gorgeous additions to my bouquets), in the garden it looked sparse, gangly, and just all-around out of place. I was on the verge of not sowing more next year, but after this thread I realized I just had it in the wrong spot. The echinacea/verbena combos above sound gorgeous, so I think I'll give it another try next year - at the back of the border! :) Dee

Hi Sara! I am thrilled they are growing well for you and hope that they self-sow for you too! But, be careful what you wish for. I didn't deadhead those plants diligently last year, and this year I bet I pulled up at least a thousand seedlings that I didn't have the space to keep! (To keep them somewhat under control, I usually deadhead them until mid-August or early September, and then I let them set seed.) What few butterflies I am having this year simply love this plant, and so do the bees. One reason I think I have so many bees and all my veggies get pollinated is that the bees come for these verbenas and then stick around and pollinate everything else while they are here. Neighbors who live as close to me as 1/4 mile are complaining that they have no bees and their veggies aren't pollinating. Guess I need to offer them some verbena seedlings next spring! Dawn

I agree with you Tom, the butterflies love it. I have a patch just outside my lanai so I can easily see them feeding on it. I hesitated for several years before adding this to my Florida garden because it was such a prolific re-seeder when I gardened in Ohio. The reseeded plants didn't travel far but were thick beneath the mother plant. In the spring I would spend time thinning, thinning, thinning. But it was time well spent because, mixed with orange and yellow cosmos, it created a welcome patch of color on my sloping front yard where the soil was clay and dry. I do find a few re-seeded plants here in Florida but, so far, no where near the abundance I experienced farther north. I do deadhead any plants that need it, including the verbena. I deadhead for appearance sake, although it undoubtedly limits the self seeding too. My verbena are in full sun, sandy soil and under an overhang so they're growing under difficult conditions. They do get the tail end of some spray from a lawn sprinkler. When it's in the high 90's for an extended period, I do walk around the garden with hose in hand, giving the plants, including the verbena, an extra drink.