Whorled Milkweed

(Asclepias verticillata)

 

Color Photograph: Illinois State Museum

Line Drawing: Britton, N.L., and A. Brown. 1913. An Illustrated Flora of the Northern United States and Canada, Second Edition.

 

Whorled Milkweed (Asclepias verticillata)

Identification: Flowers white in loose, small clusters arising from the leaf axils near the top of the plant. Family with a distinctive flower consisting of 4 petals hanging downward and a crown of 5 incurved horns. Fruit an elongate, pointed pod containing flattened seeds topped with silken parachutes. Stem and leaves with milky sap. Leaves extremely thin and arranged in a whorl of 3 to 6 leaves. Plant 1 to 2 feet in height.

Distribution: Most of eastern North America. Also occurs in the Great Plains and the eastern parts of the west.

Habitat: Whorled Milkweed is found on hillsides and in open, dry woods.

Flowering period: June to September.

 

Whorled Milkweed (Asclepias verticillata)

Similar Species:

The distinctive flowers and pods, and the whorls of thin, elongate leaves are distinctive features of Whorled Milkeweed.

Similar Species

No Similar Species