Common milkweed...trouble?

20 years ago

Hi,

I liked the stately look of the common milkweed, Asclepias syriaca which was growing in an empty lot behind our house and I also wanted to attract butterflies so I dug some up last year and planted it in several places in our yard. They all survived the transplant and are thriving... maybe too much...new shoots were coming up a foot or so beyond the main group of plants. Did I do a bad thing? Will I have trouble controlling this plant? Thanks for any comment.

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Comments (7)

yarthkin
20 years ago
Yup, it does that. Since I don't have very formal garden, it doesn't bother me much. Others find it rather troublesome. Many souces suggest the purple milkweed to be a better alternative because it is more "clumping" and less spreading.
mucknmire
Original Author
20 years ago
Thanks for the information. I guess just like bamboo I'll be chopping out runners for the duration. I'll try to look for the purple milkweed.
john_mo
20 years ago
I second the above comments. Common milkweed is an aggressive spreader -- OK where I put it in a weedy drainage, but not suitable for a 'planned' planting. Purple milkweed is smaller, but has a similar look and the flowers are much showier, IMHO. Purple milkweed has not spread from where I planted it, but it did re-sprout from a location where I had dug it up, suggesting that it can spread from roots/rhizomes.
kwoods
20 years ago
"purple milkweed"

purpurascens? It reseeds (they all do) if it likes you. incarnata and tuberosus are my favorites, all manageable (even syriaca IMO), all worth having. Just cut the pods if you don't want reseeding.

I love this...Milkweed Farm.
mucknmire
Original Author
20 years ago
Wow, great website (Milkweed Farm) kwoods. Thanks for all the comments. I'll have to look up the purple milkweed john mo if as you say it doesn't spread very much. I'll probably let the milkweed grow this year and decide whether to keep it or dig it up. I just hope it doesn't get out of hand like the elderberry I planted. I was miffed that my wife chopped it down not realizing that it would come up even more profusely.
fatso
20 years ago
Interesting thing about milkweed... We have several varieties, and one of them (butterflyweed)is not native to our clay/alkaline soil, but after settling in for about 2 years it has started to germinate from seed and pop up all over the place. So milkweed that does not currently spread from seed may do it in the future. If you don't want it all over the place, best to cut the seedpods.

Another thing, rabbits for some reason like to shear our purple milkweed off at the ground. I have no idea why cuz they don't eat it. I was smarter this year and fenced it.
renmat
20 years ago
Hi Muck,
If you ever cut back you milkweed don't get rid of it let me know and I have a thriving monarch project at the school were I teach. I can always use more.

To date my student have released more than 40 monarchs.