Showy Milkweed
Showy Milkweed
Asclepias speciosa Torr.
Apocynaceae (Dogbane Family) (formerly in Asclepiadaceae, the Milkweed Family)
▲ ▼ young plants from creeping roots in spring
▲ ▼ flowering stem
▲ ▼ flowers
▲ ▼ flowers, showing hook-like appendages curving into the center of the flower
▲ young fruit
▲ Mature fruit
▲ ▼ colony of showy milkweed in Little Bighorn National Park
Asclepias speciosa Torr., Showy Milkweed: (Bayer Code: ASCSP; US Code ASSP)
- similar to common milkweed, with oval leaves, but often more pointed leaf tip
- also has creeping roots to allow it to form colonies
- flowers have longer “hoods" extending out from outer petals and larger white “hooks" that surround the center of each flower compared to common milkweed
- can be a problem in reduced tillage western row-crops--not a problem in Missouri
The “weediness" of milkweeds has been revisited due to them being the main food for monarch butterfly larvae; therefore, milkweeds no longer are being generally considered as weeds to eradicate, and actually have legal protection in some areas.
(Updated January 19, 2019)