If you want monarch butterflies to visit your garden this fall and spring, planting milkweed in your landscape is a must! Not only is milkweed a great nectar source for thirsty pollinators, it is also THE ONLY host plant that monarch butterflies lay their eggs upon. Milkweed is also a great nectar source for monarchs and many other pollinators; fortunately for us, it comes in many varieties to choose from.
Along with providing a host and nectar source for monarch butterflies, milkweed also provides aesthetic beauty in your landscape with its unique blooms. It is, however, picky about how it is transplanted and cared for. Today I’m going to give you some easy steps and tricks of the trade for successfully planting your milkweed. Fall is the best time to plant for our native pollinators and they are headed here soon. Time to get busy! (Featured image: Lisa Mulroy. Monarch butterfly fresh from chrysalis.)
6 Steps for Successfully Planting Milkweed
Here are our recommended steps for planting milkweed. More info for each step can be found following the list.
- Choose a mostly sunny location that drains well.
- Dig only as deep as the rootball and no more than about double the width.
- Fill hole with water and let drain completely before planting.
- Cut the pot off of your milkweed transplant rather than pull it off so you don’t disturb roots.
- Set the milkweed level, or slightly higher, than ground level then backfill with soil.
- Water to get established, then set irrigation timer.
More About Butterfly Milkweed Planting Tips
1. Sun and Drainage: Most milkweed does best and offers better blooms when planted in an area that receives full sun to light shade. In San Antonio, most milkweeds do great when they receive full sun for most of the day, but a little shade in the hottest of the afternoons can be refreshing and offer them a break when we have some real scorchers.
Well-draining soil is imperative for the success of milkweed. This is super important! Soil that stays wet for too long will result in root rot and eventually death to your milkweed plant. If you are unsure if your soil drains well where you are wanting to plant, dig a 12″ x 12″ hole, fill it with water and let it drain. The water should completely and quickly drain from the hole, like in 15-20 minutes. If it doesn’t, that’s not the spot for planting milkweed.
*Note on soil: We have a huge variety of soils in Texas. Clay soil does not drain super fast and will need to be amended with a lot of perlite and peat to get the water moving through it. Rocky, limestone soils like in the Hill Country usually drain pretty well. If you are in doubt, plant your milkweed in containers with a quality potting soil like FoxFarm Happy Frog mixed with a lot of perlite (kind of like a succulent potting soil). It may just be easier than all the inground soil amending you may have to do.
2. Dig Your Hole: Planting milkweed too deep is a common mistake for novice butterfly gardeners. Milkweed should be set no deeper than the rootball. In other words, the top of the rootball soil that is in the nursery container should be set level to the top of the ground (or just slightly higher). Basically, if you dig a hole and set your milkweed plant in it, you should be able to lay a ruler across the hole and plant and it should be level or a little higher in the center. Got it?
3. Water Before Planting. You should always water both your nursery plant in its container, and the hole you are going to plant in before setting your milkweed in the ground. Fill up the hole with water and allow it to completely drain before moving on to planting. (Do the test in step 2 if you are unsure you have good drainage).
4. Cut Your Pot: Milkweed plants have long taproots that do not like to be disturbed when being planted. Do NOT use the common method of flipping your pot over and squeezing the sides and roughing up the roots like we commonly do with other plants. Milkweed is extremely sensitive about having their roots messed with. Take time and be careful, using the method in the paragraph below to get your milkweed safely out of the pot. (Once you have milkweed and it produces seed, try direct seeding in our warmer months. Milkweed grows easily from seed and you don’t have to worry about transplant shock and damage to any taproots!)
Use a utility knife and carefully cut around the edge of the bottom of your pot of milkweed from the nursery. Set the pot into the bottom of the hole you dug to check for correct hole depth (see tip 3). Use the utility knife to make a couple of vertical cuts down the sides of the pot so you can basically “peel” the pot away from your milkweed, leaving all its roots intactand as undisturbed as possible.
5. Level Milkweed and Backfill Hole: This is the time to make sure your milkweed is standing tall and straight, not leaning to the side. You can also check the level that you are planting it again since the watering may have created a deeper depression. Only if needed, add a bit of soil to bottom of hole to raise the rootball slightly higher than the existing soil grade. Planting on a berm where the rootball is slightly higher than ground level greatly reduces your risk of root rot.
Backfill hole with native soil, gently patting and firming soil around rootball, filling the rest of the hole. Tamping the soil slightly helps eliminate air pockets in the soil. Air pockets can prevent the natural flow of water to roots and roots don’t even grow in air pockets, so you don’t want them. A gentle touch is best, we’re not trying to compact the soil either.
6. Water In and Maintain: Water immediately after planting, focusing on the soil. No hard blast of water is needed, a nice slow stream is better. Water as needed after planting your milkweed to help get roots established. You may have to water more or less depending on soil type and milkweed variety. Please see more info in the first bullet point below. Your finger is the best moisture meter out there, and it’s free! Stick it into the soil and feel for moisture. If moist, don’t water, if very dry, water.
Butterfly caterpillars on Common Milkweed.
Photo credit Laura Jarvis: The Butterfly Landing
7 More Facts About Milkweed
- Milkweed can be very finicky about water. Too much can be a death sentence to most milkweeds, however, some can tolerate more water than others. It is good to research the milkweed you wish to purchase to know the difference. For refererence: Zizotes, Antelope Horns, Pineneedle, Texana, Common, Showy and Tuberosa or Butterfly Weed milkweeds really cannot tolerate wet soils at all. Soil should bascially be amlmost completely dry before watering again. Tropical, Swamp, Balloon Plant, and Giant Milkweed Tree are more tolerant of water.
- Don’t use ANY pesticides on milkweed (even organic or “safe soaps”). You will kill off all the butterfly caterpillars that feed on it and harm the butterflies drinking from it along with any other beneficial insects that visit it.
- Milkweed will most likely get aphids. So what! Ladybugs or Green Lacewings will find them and eat them, or you can blast them off with a spray from the hose (but alsways check for eggs on milkweed first). Let nature do the dirty work for you.
- The milky, sticky sap on milkweed can be irritating to skin. Wear gloves.
- I think native milkweeds are BEST, but I also don’t think tropical milkweed is “bad”, and I do use it in my garden. Just be responsible and follow these necessary precautions: Tropical milkweed MUST be cut all the way back after the fall butterfly migration to deter disruption to the natural migratory pattern of monarchs and to help eliminate the spread of OE spores (a debilitating infection that adult monarchs can contract. Educate yourself on this a little more here.) We actually advise to cut your tropical milkweed back at least 2 times a year (June and November). After cutting back your tropical milkweed, let the wounds heal closed (a couple of days, and then you can spray it with a 50/50 mixture of water and isopropyl alcohol (91% strength) to further sterilize the plant. Don’t spray during the heat of the day. To use or not use tropical milkweed is a hot topic in the gardening community. We encourage all of you to do due diligence and research and decide for yourself.
- Milkweeds may go dormant at times and lose all their foliage, so it is important to mark where you have planted them so as not to disturb the roots for future growth.
- Milkweed can be hard to find at garden centers. When you come across it, buy it. Collect seeds and grow your own.
As I wrote this blog, I had four monarch chrysalises eclose. The beauty and awe of watching these magnificent creatures evolve is why I plant milkweed in my landscape. To give myself this gift of witnessing a truly miraculous event, over and over is my why!
Stay tuned for more blogs on specific milkweeds and other amazing pollinator plants that you should try in fall!
~The Happy Gardener, Lisa Mulroy
Thanks for the tips.Helpful! My six milkweeds were off to a rough start but once I backed off the waterings they started to thrive.
Thank you for reading. I wish you many butterfly visits to your milkweed!
There were no milkweed where I live in the Princeton area. A few years ago I found some growing about 40 miles away. I gathered about 20 pods and scattered the wishes all over the neighborhood. Now it’s growing everywhere. I have many in my garden. Hope to see some Monarchs in the fall.
Sojo,
That is wonderful to hear! Hope you are swarmed with butterflies soon!
I bought milkweed roots and they are now up about 3/6inches but wondering when to put them in the ground . October 9 2022
Can you let me know what type of milkweed you bought?
Shellislandinc@aol.com
Honestly, I am very leery of spraying milkweed with anything at all. Cayenne can be a deterrent to caterpillars, and the point of milkweed is to encourage them to feed there. I generally let nature run its course on the lifecycle of milkweed and predators.
What causes the leaves to turn yellow?
Hi Dorothy,
A number of things could cause yellowing on the leaves. The top culprits being: aphids (a blast of water can dislodge and displace them), and either over or under watering.
Wonderful and informative information. Now I understand why not to over water my potted milkweed plants. Thank you.
Absolutely! Happy to help.
is a plant starter containing Boron safe for milkweed???
Hi Donna,
I am sorry I not sure about this question. I have been asking around, and I am waiting for an answer for the extension service because they may have the answer we can both benefit from. I’ve included the link in case you get to them before I do. Thanks for bringing this to light. Hope I have an answer for you soon.
Hi Donna, this is what I received from the extension service. Not a lot of info, but kind of goes along with what I have seen while researching. “Lisa, my research says that Boron is a necessary mineral for milkweed. As always I would advise them to read and follow instructions.” ~Charles Mims
Thank you for the information
Absolutely, thank you for taking the time to read.
Thanks for the great advice. When I was a child in Illinois we played with the pods, opening them and dispersing seeds to watch them fly up into the sky and away. I hope that we helped to bring about more plants for the beautiful butterflies to use. We saw many monarchs!!!
My Uncle is a retired farmer in Illinois! I have those same memories! I believe you did, in fact, offer a gift for the monarchs by doing that!
Are milkweed leaves poisonous to dogs? I want attract Monarch butterflies. Do I need to keep my chihuahuas away from the plants?
Hi Thelma,
The sap in milkweed is toxic to animals when consumed in large quantities. If your little fur babies tend to munch on your plants, I would definitely keep them in a protected area to be safe.
I’m not sure if that’s the same kind? We have those too, but they grow in a vine and never flower?
There are multiple varieties of milkweed. Is your vine in the shade? There are multiple types of milkweed vine as well, but without seeing a picture or getting more information it is difficult to identify.
Does it come back on the same root? Is it perennial? It seems to have spread in my garden on its own.
Most native milkweeds are perennials and do come back each year from roots. However….if seed pods are left to burst open on the plant, the seed fly with wild abandon, so you most likely have extra plants from seeds that found there way to those spots.
I have 2 tropical milkweed plants in large pots. I had multiple larvae but few chrysalis. Today I saw a hornet attacking the larvae and eating them. I suppose that’s nature, but is there anything I can do?
Hi Mary,
Oh, yes, that is a sad part of nature. However, you could try snipping a few branches when you find larvae on them and put them in a bottle with water and keep them inside a butterfly enclosure if you are wanting to raise them. You could also put a fine mesh netting around the pots to protect them from the hornets, but keep in mind it will also keep other butterflies from being able to lay their eggs.
Thank you so much for sharing your info
Monarchs were visiting my milkweeds earlier this season counted sbout 60 But out of all 60 only one survived ,;@ Did catch a mud dobler eating on my caterpillar shocked me, so tried to stop it but too late, so one caterpillar was crawling around edge of big pot used
For them try do as much close to nature But too many prey on them ;@ Dragonflies too ;@
Anyways question is
Monarchs are not visiting my milkweeds like first time But do see more mud doblers hanging around eating from milkweeds, Thinking this may be reason why less butterflies visiting only a couple small visiting everyday eating from milkweed blooms….But do like to help Monarchs like last year about a dozen made it thru but did most indoors in mesh cages learning experi ence
Any advice about all mud doblers hanging around…?
Cleaned all where they mud dobbled on house hoped that make go away But nope still here eating off my milkweeds ;@
Butterfly Lover in distress….🙏👀💖
I am going to contact our resident butterfly guru and see if I can pull her best advice. Stay tuned.
Myilkweed plants(2) were eaten away by i suspect rabbits
What can i spay them with????
Hi George,
Unfortunately we just don’t recommend spraying milkweed with anything. Even low-toxicity products appear to leave residue and any of that can be detrimental to the butterflies.
You might have to cage up your milkweed, or find the spot that rabbits are coming in and barricade that.
This is exactly what I did last year, raising eggs to beautiful monarchs in a butterfly enclosure. I learned more than I wanted to at times! When the eggs hatch they will go through 5 instars before they hang themselves upside down to create the chrysalis. But they eat (and poop!) like nobody’s business! When they get to the 5th instar, they eat 24/7 to prepare for their metamorphosis. I rushed to buy more milkweed because they had eaten everything I had! They will even cannibalize theirs smaller ‘siblings’! This means having to keep them separately at that stage. Bringing them into the enclosure sooner rather than later is also a good idea. There are predator wasps that will lay their eggs inside monarch larvae. Seeing them hatch and exit a caterpillar is revolting. But releasing a healthy strong monarch to fly off and join others is a joy behold. I released a total of 29, mostly female and a few male. May they propagate profusely!
Hi Lesli,
29 releases! That is wonderful. It does take a lot of work to raise these creatures, but it is definitely rewarding when you do!
Please just buy a butterfly mesh screen tent.
Hi Marissa,
Mesh screens work great to keep the butterfly larvae protected, but also keep the other pollinators out. We love the mesh screens for raising butterflies from larvae to adulthood! The goal was to inform customers the proper way to plant milkweeds, and of the dangers of using any types of pesticides, even those labeled organic.
Have two mesh cages so guessing need to go back to using them as much as possibly thank you
Mesh cages are great for protecting your caterpillars.
I live in Lake Jackson, Texas, and I teach 5th grade at Brazosport Christian School. I would love to plant a milkweed bush to attract monarchs and to allow my students to experience watching them grow from eggs to caterpillars , to watch them form their chrysalis, and eventually emerge as a butterfly. It appears that you are the closest nursery that grows native milkweeds. Can you help me get started with this project? I would LOVE to do this with my class.
Thank you for any help and information you can give me!
Sincerely,
Carol Edwards
Hi Carol,
Thank you for your interest in planting milkweeds. This blog is a great first start as planting milkweed and caring for them is of utmost importance when it comes to success. We will be having a butterfly class in September, tickets will soon go on sale, and our resident butterfly expert, Laura Jarvis, will be doling out a ton of information on raising butterflies. Being a teacher, you may not be able to attend as it is during the week, but it will be posted as a video shortly after the class concludes, so you will be able to access the info on Youtube.
In the meantime, I’d advise purchasing a few milkweed varieties (once the caterpillars find it, they will munch it down so you need multiples), getting them planted using our tips in the blog, refrain from spraying them with ANY pesticides, care for them as suggested in this blog, and then be on the look out for eggs and caterpillars. At that time, you may want to purchase a butterfly pavillion (netting to keep caterpillars safe) so you and your class can watch the transformation and keep your caterpillars and butterflies safe. We will have more blogs on caterpillars and butterflies coming soon.
Will milkweed survive in pots with other plants? I have a large metal planter that I have potted milkweed and other butterfly plants.
It will. Some milkweeds do better than others in containers. (Natives tend to like being planted in our native soil) If you have tropical milkweed, it does very well in containers. just make sure your planted is fairly deep as milkweeds have a long taproot.
Thank you for the great info. 😁 The greenhouse I went to only had the ones with white flowers. Will the Monarchs like those? It says Asclepias incarnata “Ice Ballet”.
Yes, that is a variety of swamp milkweed and monarchs will host and feed on on it. Thank you for purchasing milkweed to support our local wildlife!
I left all the volunteer milkweeds and even had a beautiful monarch caterpillar on a nearby day Lilly. The flowers have already gone by , and now the seed pods are developing. I’d like to get rid of the milkweed plants now (mid to late July) that the flowers have gone by but I don’t want to destroy any potential chrysalis habitat. Would you suggest holding off so as to protect any reveling chrysalis ( even though I don’t see anything with my naked eye) and if so until when?
Hi Jane,
I guess my first question would be to ask why you want to get rid of your milkweed? They will continue to flower again in fall and are needed throughout the butterfly migration. I’m not sure if you have native or tropical milkweeds. The rule of thumb is to cut tropical milkweed back after the fall migration has come through, generally by November, cutting it back to about 6″ from the soil. Native milkweed dies back on its own.
I would collect the seed pods, they are free starts for new milkweed plants.
If you want to just trim down the plants a little for a fuller plant and to encourage more blooms for fall, a little trim is ok. If you don’t want the milkweed at all anymore, you can just pull them out and discard, BUT….the fall migration is when Monarchs are looking for them the most!
Well, your reply spurred me on to do a little more research. I live on the coast in Massachusetts. The short story is I’ve decided to keep the plant but will snip off the seed pods.
The milkweeds have self-sown themselves in my gravel driveway, blocking off a portion of it. The pods are developing and I wanted to get rid of the plants so they will not continue to self-seed and take over my driveway.
I’ll save the seeds and throw them in safe and sunny areas so milkweeds will continue to provide homes and food to monarchs.
Do you know when they leave northeast Massachusetts? I think it’s around September.
Hi Jane,
From what I’ve researched, it looks like the monarchs start to leave by late September/early October in Massachusetts. We are based out of San Antonio, Texas. The monarchs have just recently been added to the endangered species list so I am happy to hear you are going to save your seeds and continue to feed these beauties. I also really appreciate that you are interested in doing more research! Have a wonderful weekend!
I just discovered 6 milkweeds growing in a weedy area about 20 feet from a garden I work in. They look pretty healthy and one is almost as tall as I am (5′ 2″). They are growing seed pods so pollinators have been around. I have not seen any butterflies around let alone monarchs. I keep looking. Is there anything else I can do for them?
Hi Diane,
I would just offer water when you can. When the seed pods are dry and about to split, collect the seeds so you can have more! Hang tight. The monarchs will be on the way in fall, as well as an influx of other butterflies. Fall is their most active season. I bet you’ll see plenty then!
A milkweed plant started to grow in my front yard (I did not plant it). It was great. The following year, its roots spread to the neighbor’s yard. Next thing we know, there are plants all over, spreading into neighboring yards. Not every neighbor wants milkweed in their yard. How do you prevent milkweed from spreading via its underground roots all over any given neighborhood without having to kill the ones in your own yard? Basically, I welcome the milkweed, but my neighbors do not.
Hmmmm… perhaps a way to prevent the spreading by rhizomes and roots would be to install a plastic or metal barrier fairly deep into the soil between your plants and the area leading to your neighbors? Just hoe through the roots won’t help as new plants can be formed from where the rhizomes were severed. Also, don’t forget that milkweed spreads by seed easily too. Collecting the pods before they split and let loose can help as well.
do all milk weed plants grow into bushes.
Hi Vivian,
No, not necessarily. Milkweed can even come in vines, or low growing groundcovers. The most common that you will find are tropical milkweeds that grow like a medium-sized perennial (vase shaped). As long as you follow instructions for cutting it back at least 2 times a year, after the migrations are over (late spring, and late fall), this plant is acceptable to use. You can find more info and habits of native milkweeds here.
I’ve had many imerge from the chrysalises but the wings don’t unfold enough even though they’re trying to. Is there anything that can be done?
Hi Becky,
I have actually forwarded you email to Laura Jarvis, of The Butterfly Landing. I believe she will be able to discern what if anything can be done. She is an expert in all things butterflies and can offer you some excellent information. You can also message Laura directly through her Facebook page if you have an account, or her work email: Thebutterflylanding@gmail.com. But I did pass your inquiry along.
My plant has orange all over stalks. What is this?
Hi Patricia,
I am assuming it is aphids? They love to get on milkweed. just use a hard blast of water to dislodge them. Do not use pesticides as this will contaminate your milkweed for the upcoming monarch butterflies that will be visiting it soon.
There are a couple of milkweed plants in the garden on the side of the house. Sunny rather dry location (Illinois). They have been thriving but never had any flowers. Is this a different kind of milkweed plant???
Hi June,
There are many varieties of milkweeds, so I am not really able to tell you which type you have there in in Illinois without perhaps seeing them. Also, how long have they been there? Are these new plants? They may just be taking a while to bloom. Are you confident that they are in fact milkweed?
Hello , I just started my milkweed adventure, how do I keep the birds from eating my babies.
Netting will probably be the only thing that keeps them away if you find that they are targeting your caterpillars.
I’m Larry Manning and live in Tucson AZ. When you say milkweed has a long taproot that is not adequate. How long in inches or feet do taproots grow. Thank you for your help. Also is Tucson an adequate place to grow milkweed?
Hi Larry,
The taproots of milkweeds can run 18″ or longer! Yes, you can grow milkweed in Tucson. From my understanding there are around 29 varieties of milkweeds native to Arizona. I’m attaching a resource so you can get more information honed to your area. So excited that you are interested in planting milkweed.
Can I plant milkweed seeds on a walkable but steep hill in full sun?
Milkweeds have long taproots, so anchoring into a hill will most likely not be a problem. What I am questioning is do you mean planting alongside the walkable area? I am assuming you mean that, but I’m just making sure that you know I am not advocating for planting milkweed directly in a walking path. They are not considered “steppable” plants. Research your type of milkweed you want to grow. Some varieties like a little more shade in the afternoon than other. Check out our youtube videos with Laura Jarvis as she explains many of the differences. Hope this helps.
Native Milkweeds
Tropical an Subtropical Milkweed Varieties
Hi there.
I live in the Seattle area and this year grew milkweed from seed in 2″ seed blocks (common, showy, rose, butterfly). The seedlings are now 1″- 2″ tall and almost ready to go out in my garden. I know that milkweed is not native to the Seattle area and that the Western Monarch traditionally has only occurred west of the Cascade Mountains during its spring migration . But with climate change, Seattle has seen earlier and warmer springs, hotter summers and extended mild falls and winters, so I am wondering if it is possible that we would attract Monarchs to Seattle, if we planted milkweed? Is anything known about a change in migratory behavior of the Monarchs due to climate change? I guess I m wondering if it makes sense to plant milkweed in my garden here in Seattle or if it would be a lost cause. Thank you for your interesting blog!
Is it okay to use Miracle-Gro on Aquatic and Swamp Milkweed?
Hi David,
We have not experienced or observed any problems with Miracle Gro as a toxic fertilizer for milkweed. Research is always changing in the butterfly world and there is sure to be some who strictly believe in organic products only, but as of now, we find no harm in using Miracle Gro fertilizer.
I water mine in the morning and it has plenty of FL sun, but three hours later it’s drooping, as if it’s not been watered. Should I water in the late afternoon instead?
Hi Nancy,
I always think that watering in the morning is best. I’m not sure how hot is has been there lately, but the wilting could be just a reaction to the heat. One other thing you may want to check is your drainage. Milkweed must have well-draining soil. Wilting can also be a sign of overwatering. Test your soil about 6 inches down, use a stick or sharpshooter (not to close to roots), to check for soil sticking to it, or the 2nd knuckle of your finger if it is planted in a pot. Also, what type of milkweed do you have. Some prefer a little reprieve from hot afternoon sun.
I have swamp and tropical milkweed. Are these dangerous to dogs?
According to ASPCA, milkweed is on the toxic list for dogs. I’ve attached the link for their toxic plants and you can also find a non-toxic plant list on their site as well. These are good resources if you have fur babies that tend to munch plants.
Can you cut back common milkweed in michigan in your yard? Its about knee high now with 4 sets of leaves but dont want it to grow super tall like 4ft again this year. Could i top it to make it grow more like a bush?
I cant seem to find any recommendations for this in early summer only after the season pruning the fall.
First off, we really have the knowledge and resources more geared towards the native plants for Texas, and ‘common milkweed’ can be a term used in differing ways. But… in general, most ‘common milkweed’ can be cut back by about a third after flower production and it tends to promote new growth and encourage another round of flowers. Summer is an ok time to do this, especially in order to have the nectar source available for fall.
It looks like the common milkweed in Michigan is Asclepias syriaca. This site seemed interesting as a possible resource for you specifically in Michigan.
Hope this helped some.
I received a mature orange milkweed plant about a foot and a half high I’d like to plant it now along side an existing one can I ?
Hi Will, Yes you can plant now, but you’ll need to be mindful of how horrible the weather is right now (crazy hot and dry) if you are here in San Antonio. You’ll need to baby it some. You could also keep it in a pot, sheltered in afternoon sun (again, keep mindful of watering), until the weather breaks a little and it might not have to deal with as much transplant shock.
Thanks for the article. I have read where you should not cut back the milkweed early in the spring or late fall because then the eggs of the butterflies will be lost. Is this true? If so, when is a good time to cut back the milkweed in the spring?
Hi Nina,
Cutting back milkweed is still advised. What you need to do is carefully check the undersides of leaves for eggs. You
can then place those cut stems in a jar of water. Cover the opening of the jar with plastic wrap so when the eggs hatch, the caterpillars don’t fall into the water. This allows the caterpillars to still feed on the milkweed, but also ensures that your milkweed is cut back at the proper times. We like to cut milkweed back 3 times a year. 1st week of November, First week of May, and again around late July/early August.
I am planting 3 desert milkweed next week or so. They are in a 3 gal pot. You say to put on drip system once they are established. How many days a week, and for how long? I do not want to over water. We live in Phoenix area.
Thank you ~
Hi Steve,
I am attaching this link with a watering guide for desert milkweed. You may need to adjust a little bit since the milkweed is in pots (meaning their roots can’t go in search of moisture), but this link has a good guideline. I think it’s always best to ‘feel’ your soil to learn how often you need to water. Insert your finger, or a long screwdriver into the the soil to a depth of 3-4″ and check if soil sticks or falls away easily. Hope this helps.
My milkweed grew lying flat on the ground. I planted Swamp Milkweed in May this year and it blossomed and we had many more monarchs but it didn’t stand up. At all.
Wondering if cutting down for the winter will help them to grow straight next spring. I suspect we didn’t pay close enough attention to the roots when planting.
We are in northern IL, 30 miles west of the lake. Zone 5
Hi Jan,
I was thinking too much shade at first, but you said it had blossoms, so my second thought is that the blossoms just got too heavy, perhaps? Otherwise, I’m somewhat stumped. I believe it will die back to the ground in the winter anyway. Most likely it will correct itself.
I live in Florida and recently planted milkweed. We have reclaimed water here for our lawns. Will the reclaim water be harmful to the caterpillars after they’ve eaten from the milkweed?
Thanks
Hi Susan,
I am sending this question to our resident butterfly expert to see if I can get an answer for you. I know that too much salt (like road side salts) can be harmful to the caterpillars, but I am not sure as far as the concentration in reclaimed water. You may also want to send your question to the The Texas Butterfly Ranch, as I will also. In my opinion, as it is not recommended for grey water or reclaimed, to be used on edibles like veggies and what not, I would be leery about using it for pollinator plants. Lawns in general are ok to use it on, but if you are specifically growing plants for butterflies and pollinators that are munching on it, you might not want to. But, I’ll get back to you with a pollinator’s expert opinion as soon as I can.
Boy do I wish I had read this yesterday! I live in Chicago and dug up 3 established milkweed stalks and brought them home yesterday. Apparently, I basically did every single thing wrong as I planted them. I definitely don’t have any significant taproot. More experienced gardeners had warned me that milkweed is an aggressive grower and “hard to get rid of” if it starts crowding out other plants. That translated in my novice brain that it was tough and not something that needed any special coddling. *sigh* I love how old fashioned and not “store bought” milkweed looks and am obsessed with monarchs. I really hope at least one plant survives!
Oh boy. Hope you have some luck. Maybe you can try planting the seeds instead, or you can find some of your native milkweed at a good local nursery to plant this fall.
I have two milkweed plants, one with purple flowers and one with red/orange flowers. Are these both good for monarchs? Is one a tropical milkweed? Is there are difference other than the flower color?
Hi Brad,
It sounds like you have a tropical milkweed (red/orange flowering), and another type of milkweed that I am not sure of. Does your purple flowering milkweed have really large, round, flat leaves? Which could mean you have a Giant Tropical milkweed tree. Or if your foliage has more slender leaves, you may have swamp milkweed which produces purple/pink flower clusters.
Sorry, I didn’t finish my comment… All milkweed is beneficial for monarchs, but with tropical milkweeds versus native, you have to make sure you cut it back, whereas native milkweed naturally dies back. This is in order to both reduces spores of OE that can be harmful to monarchs and also to make sure they scoot along their way during their migration. We don’t want them hanging around when they should be making their journey to Mexico.
The recommendation is to cut back tropical milkweed 3 times a year. In May after the spring migration comes through, End of July or early August to have fresh growth for the upcoming fall migration, and then no later than Nov 1st after the fall migration comes through. Hope this helps.
I have Butterfly, Common, Rose and Showy seedlings growing in pots. Some are 6 inches high and others are 3-4 inches. How tall should the plants get before I plant them in the ground? Today is 8/30/24; weather wise, is it still safe to plant them, or should I keep them in pots through the winter?
Thank you
6 inches is generally apt enough to plant in the ground and all of these types of milkweed should be able to be planted now. They should be able to grow fast and get some roots in the ground before the first frost. What you need to know is that they will most likely die back in winter (but not the roots, unless we get some crazy winter storm). So be sure that you put some markers down where you plant them, because once they die back, you won’t see them until they emerge again once it gets warmer again.
Hi, I was very successful last year with my monarchs. At least 30 then I lost count. I have mesh covering plant with a tomato cage. This year my plants are covered with aphids. I have several that are in the third stage just covered and protected. I am afraid that I have nothing for them to eat when they arrive. Was planning to get more plants today. Please help!
Hi Susan,
Sorry, I have been on vacation for the last two weeks. We currently have a variety of different milkweeds at both of our locations if you are needing more host plants. While covering plants with mesh if beneficial against certain predators, it also prevent beneficial insects like lacewings from coming in and clearing out aphids. In general, caterpillars can still consume milkweeds that have aphids, but I don’t know the extent of your infestation.