FNPS Plant Database

Asclepias verticillata

whorl-leaf milkweed, whorled milkweed.

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Nomenclature

Common Name:

whorl-leaf milkweed, whorled milkweed.

Synonym(s):

Genus species:

Asclepias verticillata

Family:

Apocynaceae

Plant Specifics

Form:

flower

Size:

1-3 ft tall and up to 1 ft wide

Life Span:

annual

Flower Color:

white, green

Fruit Color:

green

Phenology:

Noted For:

Showy Flowers

Landscaping

Recommended Uses:

Wildflower garden. This is a small but pretty little plant. Grow it in a moist wildflower garden.

Considerations:

It may be necessary to re-seed to keep this in the garden. Seed is not generally commercially available. This is the most toxic of the milkweeds and is considered a weed where livestock graze.

Availability:

Seed

Propagation:

Seed

Light:

Full Sun, Part Shade

Moisture Tolerance:

Always Flooded------------------------------------------------Extremely Dry

-|----|----|----|---- <------------------> ----|----|----|----|-

Usually moist, occasional inundation ---to--- Not wet but not extremely dry

Salt Water Flooding Tolerance:

Not salt tolerant of inundation by salty or brackish water

Salt Spray/Salty Soil Tolerance:

Low/no tolerance of salty wind or direct salt spray

Soil or Other Substrate:

Sand

Soil pH:

acidic to neutral

Suitable to Grow In:

8A,8B, 9A, 9B, 10A, 10B

USDA zones are based on the average annual extreme minimum winter temperature.



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Ecology

Wildlife:

Butterflies, Caterpillars, Pollinators

Larval host for the monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus). Attracts various pollinators.

Native Habitats:

Flatwoods

Natural Range in Florida:

Comments:

Ethnobotany:

General Comments:

Citations:

Tras, Pamela. 2001. Gardening for Florida's Butterflies. Great Outdoors Publishing, St. Petersburg, FL.


Wunderlin, R. P., B. F. Hansen, A. R. Franck, and F. B. Essig. 2021. Atlas of Florida Plants. https://florida.plantatlas.usf.edu/ , accessed 2025. Institute for Systematic Botany, University of South Florida, Tampa.

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