Common Name: Common Milkweed

Scientific Name: Asclepias syriaca

Family: Apocynaceae

Habitat: Meadows

Native: Yes

Life Cycle: Perennial

Bloom Time: Summer

Height: Up to 5 feet

Light: Full sun

Soil: Average

Pollinators: Butterflies, Bees, Birds

Description: Common Milkweed is a native wildflower that is most well known for attracting the Monarch butterfly! Named after the milky sap inside its stem, Common Milkweed blooms each year between mid and late summer and grows as many as 100 flowers on each cluster. Common Milkweed prefers to grow in average, well-drained soil and full sun in meadows, native gardens, or pollinator gardens. This photo of Common Milkweed was taken in the Native Grassland at Creasey Mahan.