My favorite milkweeds

Asclepias perennis is one of my favorite milkweeds. I was puzzled for a long time because it and several other milkweeds are also known as White milkweed. It is not as readily available as some of the others, but it grows better for me and retains some leaves during the winter.

It is also known as Aquatic milkweed which means it takes more water than the drier A. tuberosa but still thrives in a normal garden. In my opinion, it is less finicky than some others that are totally dormant in winter and very slow in spring regrowth. When purchasing this variety, rely on the botanical name or you may get Asclepias incarnata which is also known as white milkweed but can come in pink shades.

I just got in a shipment of 72 small, well-rooted seedlings which actually have small blooms on them. I have repotted them in $7.50 pots and wait on them to grow. I have a few gallon pots left that overwintered outside and are $15 each.

According to the Florida Native Plant Society, A. perennis is a short-lived perennial 1-3 feet tall by 1 ft wide. It is evergreen and blooms periodically from spring to fall. It will survive in shade but bloom better in part-to-full sun and does well in bog gardens and rain gardens or bioswales.