| Product: |
Milkweed (Asclepias) |
| Date: |
15.09.07 (149 review reads) |
| Rating: |
 |
Advantages: Good for wildlife
Disadvantages: Toxic
When I saw a category for milkweed I immediately thought of the garden weed we used to call milk weed because when you break the stem the sap is white like milk. I looked again and realised it was not the same milkweed as the weed I immediately thought of is a spurge and the milk weed this category created for is Asclepiads syriaca.The milkweed is a south American plant .
So what do I know about the milk weed.
Well the first this thing that springs to my mind is the monarch butterfly. The milk weed is its food plant . the monarch caterpillar will eat no other food.
( yeah married to a butterfly nut I seem to know this) The Monarch is an American butterfly which is sometimes spotted in England on the south coasts it migrates and sometimes gets assisted her by the winds and thermals .
The milk weed is not a native plant of the UK but you can buy them and they will grow here. . Milkweeds are available to buy from http://www.heliconius.co.uk/plants.htm. This milkweeds botanical name is: Asclepias curassavica common name: Tropical milkweed, blood flower, or Butterfly Weed.
Milk weed is good for wildlife. Not only is it a food plant for the Monarch butterfly caterpillars but the flower is a good source of nectar for butterflies bees and other insects. The humming bird is also attracted to this plant for its sweet nectar .
The milkweed is a perennial plant .
Use of thios plant.
~~~~
Some of the milkweeds can be used to make fibres for cloth and twine. There is a soft floss in the seed pods which can be used like kapok for stuffing soft toys and cushions
The milkweed also contains latex which is used for making rubber.
I have read some part of the milk weed are edible too IF COOKED ! Please check this if you think you might eat some as I do not know this and would not recommend you ate it unless you got information from somewhere else.
Apparently Milkweed is toxic too. This toxic plant does have some medicinal uses. I think you would have to look elsewhere for aurthorative information. Aparently some silly sheep and animals will eat the plant and get ill.
So what does a milkweed look like:-
~~~~~~~
Some of the milkweed family can grow to 1.5 meters tall. The stems have a milky sap. The green oval leaves grow on the stem opposite each other.
The flowers.
~~~~~
These grow in a cluster and can be red , white, pink , yellow, prange..
The seeds
~~~~~~
These are encased in a long seed pod.
If I have whetted your appetite for more information I found these websites
http://www.pfaf.org/leaflets/milkweed.php
http://w ww.illinoiswildflowers.info/prairie/plantx/pr_milk weedx.htm.
http://www.vet.purdue.edu/depts/addl/to xic/plant26.htm
Thanks for reading I edid know a little of the information I gave you and enjoyed researching and finding out the other info .
Summary: A south American plant that the Monarch butterfly caterpillars eat
|
|
