Are you familiar with cutworms? They cut off thin stems a few inches or less above ground level, or cut off leaves from larger stems. Often they leave piece of the plants on the soil's surface, though not always. They spend their days curled in loose soil near the base of the plant within an inch or two of the soil's surface. If you disturb them they curl up into a tight spiral. Go out with a flashlight at dusk and look near the base of the plant and up the stems. The cutworms vary in color from tannish to greenish to brownish, and the youngest will be less than 1/4" in length while older ones can be up to about 1 1/2". You can squash them or drop them into a container of soapy water. After dark they migrate over the garden's surface to find new plants, so you may need to check more than once. With small plants you can give them a plastic collar that goes an inch or so below the soil surface and a couple inches above to discourage new cutworms from finding your plant.

Sharon, as far as I know, there is no need to have more than one plant in order to produce seeds. Some milkweeds won't produce seeds until their second year.....perhaps that's where that idea came from? Yes, they need stratification. I've not propagated milkweed myself but from all that I've read, cuttings root very readily when basic accepted methods of asexual propagation are followed. In other words, do a bit of research.

No it isn't. More like a Campanula.

Yep, another balloon flower lover here! I have the dwarf "Sentimental Blue" which makes a lovely edger, as well as taller varieties -- Mariesii and Fuji Blue. The taller ones have a grace that the dwarfs just don't possess (nice as they area). I've got seeds of Mariesii under the lights right now -- hoping for germination and enough growth before mid-fall so I can safely plant out.