Milkweed (Asclepias)
| ..... | horns none or lvs alt. | hoods about equaling the gynostegium, horns surpass hoods; | hoods surpass the gynostegium, horns do not surpass the hood |
| fls white | ..... | poke m.w. (5.exaltata) nodding fls; moist upland woods; s ME to VA & s in mts | 4-leaved m.w. (11.quadrifolia) white to pale pink; dry upland woods; VT to VA & s in mts |
| white w/ purplish center | ..... | ..... | white m.w. (12.variegata) upland woods & thickets; CN s to n FL |
| greenish white | ..... | whorled m.w. (2.verticillata) fields, roadsides, upland woods & prairies; MA to FL | ..... |
| green | green m.w. (21.viridiflora) dry upland woods & prairies; CN to GA | ..... | ..... |
| greenish purple or brownish pink | ..... | blunt-leaved (6.amplexicaulis) dry fields, prairies, & open woods, us in sandy soil; NH to FL | common m.w. (7.syriaca) fields, meadows & roadsides; s to n GA |
| purplish red | ..... | ..... | red m.w. (15.rubra) swamps, bogs & wet woods on or near the coastal plain; LI s to TX |
| pink/or pink to rose purple | ..... | swamp m.w. (3.incarnata) pink to red purple; w/ hairy stem; open swamps, ditches, & wet prairies; s to FL | ..... |
| red to orange-red | ..... | ..... | few-flowered m.w. (13.lanceolata) swamps, bogs & brackish marshes on the coastal plain; NJ to FL |
| orange | butterfly m.w. (1.tuberosa) lvs alt; prairies & upland woods, esp in sadny soil; s NH to FL | ..... | ..... |
gynostegium = structure composed of combined filaments, anthers & styles
hood = like fused petals
horns = pointed objects between hood and gynostegium.
Kalm. 11/12/1749. Asclepias syriaca, or , as the French call it, le cotonnier, grows abundant in the country on the sides of hills which lie near rivers, as well as in a dry and open place in the woods and in a rich loose soil. When the stalk is cut or broken it emits a lactescent juice, and for this reason the plant is reckoned in some degree poisonous. The French in Canada nevertheless use its tender shoots in spring, preparing them like asparagus, and the use of them is not attended with any bad consequences, as the slender shoots have not yet had time to suck up anything poisonous. Its flowers are very fragrant, and when in season, they fill the woods with their sweet exhalations and make it agreeable to travel in them, especially in the evening. The French in Canada make a sugar of the flowers, which for that purpose are gathered in the morning, when they are covered with dew. . . . The poor collect it and with it fill their beds, especially their children's, instead of feathers. . . . The horses never eat this plant. P. 387-388.