I am really sorry to question your word, but the first picture, with the butterfly looks like Mountain Mint to me. The other are definitely whorled Milkweed. Very nice post.
OK....Now I HAVE to Plant Milkweed in our "lower 40!" I've "thought-about-it, of course, for forty -odd (very Odd) years now, and with this Reminder and (as usual, wonder-full photos),
I must, I must! (Excuse #1: our upper garden is quite large and demanding. Plus, my friends and I spent 10 years "saving" The Glenwood Nature Preserve...200 acres of Nature in the land below our house...Wetlands, Redwood Forests, Rolling Hills of Lupine...you get it. (Successfully, TG!) Anyway, Thank You, Diane, (the Butterflies will thank you!) for this push. I promise, Mom Nature! And you'all! :<))
There are gorgeous milkweeds that are native to every part of North America (and other continents too). Pick something that grows naturally where you are, and the results will be both easy and of maximum value to wildlife.
Diane, your photos are such a delight--especially the revelatory magnifications that show us what it's like to look *closely* at a plant. A special delight in winter, when everything has been frostbitten. Thank you!
I planted my first whorled milkweed two years ago. Looking forward to their beautiful flowers that will attract lots of friends from the insect world.
Oh, how wonderful! You should see flowers this summer!
They are beautiful. I need to get something local. They are so pretty.
I posted a note on how to find milkweeds native to any county in North America. The note is at https://substack.com/@justakid/note/c-206422108.
Fascinating to see this kind of milkweed I had never heard of. Thanks.
I am really sorry to question your word, but the first picture, with the butterfly looks like Mountain Mint to me. The other are definitely whorled Milkweed. Very nice post.
Hi Pam, you're a better botanist than I am so I won't contradict you. You are probably right, and I am grateful to you.
(I've now disappeared the photo that was not Whorled Milkweed.)
Too bad we can't enlarge the flowers to know for sure, but the leaves and stems look more like mountain Mint.
I think you are right.
Thank You, Mom!🥰
OK....Now I HAVE to Plant Milkweed in our "lower 40!" I've "thought-about-it, of course, for forty -odd (very Odd) years now, and with this Reminder and (as usual, wonder-full photos),
I must, I must! (Excuse #1: our upper garden is quite large and demanding. Plus, my friends and I spent 10 years "saving" The Glenwood Nature Preserve...200 acres of Nature in the land below our house...Wetlands, Redwood Forests, Rolling Hills of Lupine...you get it. (Successfully, TG!) Anyway, Thank You, Diane, (the Butterflies will thank you!) for this push. I promise, Mom Nature! And you'all! :<))
There are gorgeous milkweeds that are native to every part of North America (and other continents too). Pick something that grows naturally where you are, and the results will be both easy and of maximum value to wildlife.
Now I want to buy a microscope! What a wonderful piece of writing. Thank you.
Thank you Michelle. I like a "dissecting microscope," which is low power (8-35x) and gives binocular vision with two eyepieces.
Beautiful photos and story. It's wonderful that your milkweeds will support the
Monarch butterfly migration.
It's such a heartening trend that more and more people recognize how monarchs depend on milkweeds and are bringing milkweeds back.
Diane, your photos are such a delight--especially the revelatory magnifications that show us what it's like to look *closely* at a plant. A special delight in winter, when everything has been frostbitten. Thank you!
Thank you. Yes, my botany defaults to seeds and memories at this time of year.
I didn't know about this milkweed. Thank you! Do you have a link of a company where I can get some seeds?
I like https://www.prairiemoon.com (Prairie Moon) for seeds for the Midwest. But there are others.
Last year I got Whorled Milkweed seeds from Prairie Moon Nursery. No affiliation other than as a sometimes customer.
What a beautiful plant, even better because so many insects love it.
Doug Tallamy opened my eyes to the concept that insect support is the first goal of plantings. Turns out that makes for a beautiful garden, too.