Asclepias speciosa - Showy milkweed

Showy milkweed (Asclepias speciosa) is a perennial herb native to North America, its young shoots, flower buds, and seed pods widely eaten and its bast fibre used for rope and cloth.¹

Inputs

• Hardiness zone 3¹
• Hardiness zone 4¹
• Hardiness zone 5¹
• Hardiness zone 6¹
• Hardiness zone 7¹
• Hardiness zone 8¹
• Hardiness zone 9¹
• Semi-shade¹
• Full sun¹
• Well drained soil¹
• Moist soil¹

Outputs

• Human food¹
• Medicinal use¹
• Fibre¹
• Dye¹

Type

• Herb
• Perennial

Functions

• Fire resistance²

Footnotes

1. Asclepias speciosa | Plants for a Future ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷ ↩⁸ ↩⁹ ↩¹⁰ ↩¹¹ ↩¹² ↩¹³ ↩¹⁴ ↩¹⁵ ↩¹⁶

2. Leaf burn times of California native plants, Las Pilitas Nursery, 2005 propane-torch ignition trial, live-leaf ignition time >60 seconds ↩