I have three of these plants planted and they did pretty well last year. Then of course went dormant after my wonderful share of Monarchs and Queens visited. I have always heard that it takes a long time for these to come up in spring. I was wondering if anyone knew exactly how long and when I might expect these to show some signs of life. I am in zone 7B if that helps. I certainly want to get new plants if these do not come back. Also having the same problem with my passion vine. I already have Monarchs and frits and no flowers to back me up. Any help is appreciated.
Leslie
Butterfly Weed or Milkweed question
Leslie,
Mine have just now started coming on ... they are just three or four inches out of the ground ....... You are much cooler up there (even had snow not too long ago) so I would so not to worry just yet ...... I know how hard it can be to wait :o) !!
ps ..... I still have plenty of seeds left from last year, so I can send you some if you need them.
james t
Mine are just an inch or two so far. I have a lot of shade that tends to slow mine down.
here is a pic of the ones that are in the bed ........took these pics just thjis morning :o)
james t
Hey, folks - Do you know if the milkweed aphids harm any other plants? I had 2
butterflyweed plants in my garden - the aphids were all over them ( & kept coming
back). I'm new at the gardening thing, so I freaked (having just done battle, suc-
cessfully, with spider mites) & pulled the plants. I'll plant more if I can be sure the
aphids won't mess with anything else.
Carol,
The aphids that get on the milkweed are I believe milkweed aphids ...... they have not seemed to bother any of my other plants ....... they are quite persistent in returning, but can be controlled with a soapy water formula ..... just spray them as you see them. .......Also......... Lady Bugs seem to LOVE to munch on them and seem to seek them out as well.
James T
Carol be careful if you try to squish any of the aphids, not to destroy the ladybug larvae stages. They are tiny and orange also. Here is a link to the Bug Files on them.
http://davesgarden.com/guides/bf/showimage/3550/
Great news guys thanks. James I appreciate the seed offer but have many seeds myself. I keep planting them but I cannot tell that they come up. I am just too eager I guess. I knew they were slow coming up but if yours are coming up then that gives me hope. I was hoping to catch some Monarchs around this spring. Hopefully I still can but if not the fall migration was wonderful for me last year. I got to raise quite a few Monarchs.
Thanks for the info everybody.
And James your garden is always so pretty. Is that Yarrow next to your Bweed? I have some coming back this year but bet it does not get as big as yours will. Yours is very pretty though whatever it is.
Leslie
Thanks Lelie you are soo kind :o) ........ yes that is Yarrow, and it struggled last year so bad, but it is coming on strong this year. Also in that pic are Zinnia seedlings and of course the Verbena and looks like just a piece of a Bluebonnet Bloom !!
james t
I believe the MW and Passion Flower vines come up when the weather is warmer. At least mine do here in Florida. When it is chilly here, they go nite-nite! lol
My Milkweed and Passion flower are a bit slow this year too. The aphids get on my milkweed real bad...but have never spread to other plants. I do have alot of Lady bugs around now thanks to them. MY grandkids love the butterflies and Ladybugs.
Oooh! Nice photo of the White Peacock on what looks like a Mexican Flame Vine! I, too, get lots of aphids on my milkweed. But the Milkweed Beetles are far worse! I HATE those bugs!!!
Great pic. I wish I could grow Mexican Flame Vine here. It sounds like such a wonderful plant. Lucky you guys are.
Leslie
Leslie - There is NO reason you can't ... is there? They grow well in Texas ya know!
Milkweed Beetles which ones are they ( what do they look like)? ....... they are not the Assasin Bugs are they?
here is a link to the Flame Vine ...... interesting
http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/go/90602/
This message was edited Apr 3, 2008 12:52 PM
Maybe this is the bug she is seeing on the milkweed. They die on my watch. I keep a cup of soapy water in the garden and check the MW and thump them off into the cup when I see them. They feed on my caterpillars!
http://davesgarden.com/guides/bf/showimage/997/
Edited to say.... TXMel in Burleson grew the Flame vine and it was georgeous. I bought one last week at Plant Shed. I am going to give it a whirl. It had already had set blooms and made seeds. So I can start another next year if it doesn't make it. I will give you some seeds to try too, dmail me.
This message was edited Apr 3, 2008 10:35 PM
yep .........I believe that is the notorious assassin bug ........and yep they die on my watch too .....usually just smush between my fingers when I see them !!
My Tuberosa is only a couple inches high, but I noticed two Monarch cats on it today!! Went and bought a few plants at a nursery. Almost didn't get them. The lady working the plants when I asked about Milkweed, said no we don't carry it, it's a weed! So when I went to check out, I complained that they should carry it for the Monarchs and the lady said they just got two flats in. She was nice enought to walk back out and show me where they were. Glad I had the moxie to complain or my wee little cats may have starved!!
This message was edited Apr 7, 2008 6:40 AM
Oh thank goodness, Sheila! I've been scrimping leaves off all my chewed down milkweed to keep feeding my babies! No nurseries have any at the moment. So am hoping my yard MW keeps producing those leaves. I saw Monarchs and Queens today checking things out. I am like ... Go away!!! No MW left! LOL!
Thanks for the info on the flame vine. Don't know why I did not think I could grow it.
My milkweed is still not up and none to be found in the nurseries around here. I am trying to be patient but am not very good at it.
Leslie
Oh and thanks for the link James.
How do I know when I should plant my milkweed outside? I'm starting a lot from seed this year - 3 types. Should I wait until a monarch siting in the area? Ideally, I would like for them to be as large as possible before planting.
I would plant the seeds after the last frost date. Most cultivars of Milkweed grow pretty fast and you are right ... you want milkweed available for the Monarchs. Or you could start them inside.
Becky,
They are already started. I wasn't planning to transplant them until mid May. Now, I am worried that the monarchs will be there before I get the milkweed into the garden.
If you start seeing Monarchs coming through your yard, set the Milkweed out ... pot and all!!! :-)
I save some A. curassavica in pots from the year before, protected them from freezes by either covering well or bringing them in. Otherwise I'd have little growing in case spring Monarchs lay eggs. I also try to cover the milkweed growing in the bed by the back door as best I can. Those cats eat so much! And some of the unprotected milkweed haven't started growing yet. BTW, one itty bitty Monarch cat has hatched from the eggs I found and is eating its eggshell. More pending!
I started 2 18 count flats some months ago. They're about 4-5 in tall now and I will be planting them in different parts of the yard soon.
I just throw milkweed seeds in my garden beds in early Spring. I am always hoping that the wasps don't know where all the MW is planted so that some of the baby cats are safe until I find them and raise them in cages. The seeds seem to grow without much fuss. And MW is fast growing, IMHO.
Brought in my first three Monarchs of the season. They were eating my little two inch MW plants when I got home from my vacation. I went to a nursery and found about 1 foot tall plants with three branches. Bought several to get me started so I didn't run out. They are in the last instar it appears, but could be more on the way, I didn't see the Monarch that laid those eggs!
I am new to DG and new to butterfly gardening..... I was hoping to have a bed out back to attract butterflies - but this raising and releasing is all foreign to me. Not sure if I can learn quickly enough for this year, but we'll see.....
On the tuberosa - does it come back year after year? Or do you have to replant? Or are you just planting seeds to have more?? Sorry to have so many questions......
Genna
Hey Genna don't feel bad. I have been on this forum for a year now and as you can see I am still asking questions. My milkweed has still not come up from last year. I do have some tiny plants that I got from Live Monarch when I ordered some more enclosures but that is all. And still none at any of the nurseries. I don't understand it. I am starting to become concerned.
Becky, cannot believe you just throw those seeds out and they grow. I have planted seeds in pots, seeds in the ground, seeds in the Park Seed Biodome and nothing. I have yet to have a plant come up from a seed of milkweed. Is that weird or what?
Leslie
Don't feel bad. For most species, milkweed is one of the most difficult plants to grow from seed. I've tried quite a few milkweed species by seed. Very difficult! Finally decided to grow the Mexican Milkweed (which I think is easier to just do cuttings, but can grow from seeds) and a couple of milkweeds than grow locally. But I'm still trying....I'd like to try A. tuberosa again and some other species. So far, the few A. tuberosa seedlings I got didn't survive and the nurseries I go to don't have it (although I've seen Mexican Milkweed mislabeled as that). You may have read up on growing milkweed from seed, but here's a few urls.
http://www.monarchwatch.org/milkweed/prop.htm
http://plant-materials.nrcs.usda.gov/pubs/mspmctn9604.pdf
http://www.geocities.com/bttfly9/growingmilkweed.html
Genna,
A. Tuberosa should come back, it is zone 3 -8, along with A. Incarnata. A. Curassavica is a tropical milkweed. I am still waiting for my milkweed to make an appearance from last year. I have started all three milkweeds this year. I just need some monarchs.
A. Curassavica was a dissapointment for me. I saved seeds and planted freely with hopes of having loads of MW the next year. Unfortunately I didn't look that it was not hardy in my 7B zone, assuming it was perennial for me. The large plant sucumb to the freeze as did all of my small plants!
Does anyone grow A. Viridiflora, green milkweed? I have a copy of the Brooklyn Botanic Garden's Butterfly Gardener's Guide, and it sounded as if it might do well in my area.
I was going to post this into Daily Butterflies, but I saw this thread and felt like it might fit in well here.
I was out poking around in my garden, and a large, old Monarch was fluttering by.
What really gives me laugh is that she can find a 2" tall milkweed plant, and lay eggs on it.
I really don't want the eggs on the plant yet, as the small plant that is just now coming out of dormancy is too small, and I'd like the plant to grow up much larger before it vanishes by the cats.
Poor thing, she is really beaten up looking. If you are close to a Botanic Garden, let the eggs hatch and then transfer the cats to one of their Milkweeds. Or take the leaf that the egg is on and tape the leaf to a MW stem. It will eat the egg casing and then find the new leaves.
Sheila, Great advice. I actually saw her come through again today, and she brought more eggs with her.
It does look like she's travelled a long ways, and back again. Her wings are in good shape, just more faded now.
Poor little thing. If coming back from Mexico, it's been quite the journey for her. Wish you were closer. I don't have many Monarch cats right now and the mom that left these is gone. It seems like this spring not many are going through this area. I could probably feed more cats with the milkweed I have.
I haven't seen anymore Monarchs since I brought in the three and they went into chrysalis. Maybe the storms and cold spell pushed them back or East. I am prepared though now I have several larger plants.
I got a 1 gal Senna corymbosa a couple days ago and the sulphur bfs have already laid an egg on it before I got it in the ground!
What is Senna corymbosa ?? I can't find it in the plant files and I have never heard of it................ Ok, so IF the A Tuberosa is hard to grow from seed, and the garden centers don't have it...are you ordering it off line every spring?? Or are you just adding to your collection?
thanks
Genna