Leaf head, Are you sure it's rabbits? I've grown milkweed for years in neighborhoods with tons of bunnies and never had them touched. I wonder if it could be a ground hog or wood chuck or other critter. Not that it matters much, I guess. Can you provide any protection? I know you've got lots of milkweed, and it's hard to protect an entire yard. I managed to get 4 curassavica sprouts from seed and I planted them out yesterday. My tuberosa and incarnata are sloooowly reappearing. We've had quite a cool spring. I also planted out about 5 patches of zinnias. My three established salvias have started blooming and I have more seedlings to plant out. This is my second summer in this yard and it's so fun to see everything take hold and multiply. We had lots of rain and some warm weather a few weeks ago, and now there are volunteer seedlings popping up everywhere. Happy planting. Martha

Last year was my first experience with this plant. Since I wanted to keep it going, I took cuttings just before frost and kept them in water over winter. I also dug plants from my yard and put them in containers to keep on a screened porch. I also covered these on nights where the temps got very cold. When spring came, all of the cuttings had rooted. Most of the mature plants on the porch were still green. I planted all of these out, both rooted cuttings and the original green plants. The old plants all bit the dust. All of the new rooted cuttings grew and bloomed and made seed.

BUTTERFLY: Danaidae Danaus plexippus USA (Monarch, milkweed butterfly, wanderer, black-veined brown) HOSTPLANTS: Apocynaceae (Dogbane) Apocynum androsaemifolium Cosmopolitan ([creeping, flytrap, spreading]dogbane; Indian hemp, bitter root) Asclepiadaceae (Milkweed) Araujia sericifera Nearctic (white bladderflower, cruel vine, cruel plant, bladder vine) Asclepias amplexicaulis USA ([blunt-leaved, bluntleaf, sand, clasping]milkweed) A. asperula USA (antelope-horns, [green-flowered, antelope horn, spider]milkweed) A. californica USA ([California, Sierra]milkweed) A. cancellata Nearctic (wild cotton) A. cordifolia USA ([purple, heartleaf]milkweed) A. curassavica USA {syn: A. nivea, A. bicolor} ([annual, scarlet, tropical, Caribbean]milkweed; bloodflower, butterfly-weed, silkweed, cotton bush, pleurisy root, red top, redhead, sunset flower, cancerillo, ipecacuanha, koningsbloem, Indian root) A. curtissii USA ([Curtiss's, sandhill, scrub]milkweed) A. eriocarpa USA ([Monarch, Indian, butterfly, woollypod, woolly]milkweed) A. erosa USA (desert milkweed) A. exaltata USA {syn: A. phytolaccoides} ([poke, poke-leaved, tall]milkweed) A. fascicularis USA {syn: A. mexicana} ([narrowleaf, narrow-leaved, Mexican whorled, Mexican]milkweed) A. hirtella USA ([tall green, prairie, green, Barrens]milkweed) A. humistrata USA ([sandhill, pinewoods, purple, scarlet]milkweed) A. incarnata USA ([swamp, rose]milkweed) A. lanceolata USA ([red, fewflower, smooth orange, pineland, lanceleaf, lanceolate, few-flowered]milkweed; purple silkweed) A. latifolia TX (broad-leaf milkweed) A. longifolia USA ([longleaf, Florida]milkweed) A. obovata USA ([pineland, green]milkweed) A. oenotheroides USA ([zizotes, Texas, longhorn]milkweed) A. perennis FL ([white swamp, aquatic]milkweed) A. physocarpa Cosmopolitan (goose plant, balloon plant, balloon cotton bush, balloon cotton, swan plant, pod milkweed) A. purpurascens USA (purple milkweed) A. rubra USA (red milkweed) A. speciosa USA (showy milkweed) A. subulata Cosmopolitan ([desert, rush]milkweed; candelilla) A. subverticillata Cosmopolitan {syn: A. galioides} ([Western whorled, horsetail, poison, bedstraw]milkweed; Navajo Name: Ch'il'abe's'óóz) A. sullivantii USA ([prairie, Sullivant's, smooth]milkweed) A. syriaca USA {syn: A. cornuti}(common milkweed, silkweed, wild cotton flower, wild cotton) A. tomentosa USA ([velvetleaf, hairy, tuba, sandhills, velvet]milkweed) A. tuberosa USA (butterfly[weed, plant, bush];[pleurisy, wind, white, Canada, orange, tuber, flux]root; chigger[plant, flower];[butterfly, Rolf's, orange, yellow]milkweed; Indian paintbrush, Indian-posy, swallowwart, orange swallowwort, Southern butterfly weed) A. variegata USA ([white, redring, green-flowered, variegated]milkweed) A. verticillata USA ([whorled-leaf, whorled, linear-leaved, whorled white, eastern whorled]milkweed) A. vestita USA ([woolly, Parish's woolly]milkweed) A. viridiflora USA {syn: A. obovata}([green comet, green, short green, green-flowered, wand]milkweed) A. viridis USA ([green, oblong-leaved, spider, green antelopehorn, green-flowered, antelope horn]milkweed) Calotropis gigantea Cosmopolitan (giant milkweed) C. procera Nearctic (calotropis, rubber bush, apple of Sodom, mudar, madar, king's crown, roostertree) Cynanchum angustifolium USA (Gulf Coast swallowwart, milkweed vine) C. laeve Nearctic {syn: Gonolobus laevis, C. sinaloense, Ampelamus albidus} ([sand, blue, honey]vine; [honeyvine, climbing]milkweed; angle pod, vine milkweed) Gomphocarpus fruticosus Nearctic {syn: Asclepias fruticosa, A. arborescens, G. fruticosus} (narrow leaf cotton bush, Irish ballon, swan plant, balloon-cotton, Cape-cotton, duck bush, bristle-fruited silkweed, balloon weed, white swan milkweed) Marsdenia Spp. Nearctic {example species, descriptions follow} (M. cundurango (Cotton root); M. zimapanica(Mex), large climbers, latex sap) Matelea reticulata USA ([pearl, net-vein, netted]milkvine; milkvine, pearl milkweed, green milkweed vine) Morrenia odorata FL ([strangler, milkweed]vine; tasi, Florida milkweed vine, latex plant) Sarcostemma clausum USA (white twinevine, white milkweed vine, viney milkweed, whitevine, narrow-leaf milkweed vine) S. crispum TX (wavy-leaf milkweed vine, wavyleaf twinevine, wavyleaf climbing milkweed, wavyleaf milkvine) Convolvulaceae (morning glory) Ipomoea Spp. Nearctic Malvaceae (Mallow) Gossypium arboreum Nearctic {available in TX}(cotton tree, tree cotton, devkapas) Rutaceae (Citrus) Citrus Spp. Nearctic Sapotaceae (Sapodilla) Manilkara grandiflora Nearctic ( ? possibly M. zapota)

Sorry, I never found Asclepias rubra. If only! But I have located a seller of Asclepias quadrifolia in New York state, and have exchanged emails with the nursery owner. So, that is to say, I have given up on rubra and have plans for quadrifolia, but in the future I will definitely be able to trade seeds fro quadrifolia. What milkweed species do you grow currently? And, I am not sure if this is too specific a question, but do you know anything about rare asclepias syriaca varients (such as white common milkweed)? I am very interested in them and can trade or pay.