Here's another site that will give three free seed packets of Swamp Milkweed. which is one of my personal favorites. I believe you have the option to either order them for the price of shipping, or send them a self-addressed stamped envelope.
http://www.saveourmonarchs.org/store/p17/Milkweed_Seeds.html
Yay,
CrazyConure!! Happy dance!!
This is my first year growing milkweeds, too. I'm pretty sure you're supposed to plant them in groupings of at least 3, that way if they do exhaust one food source, they can easily move on to another plant. This is something I know
@JBtheExplorer or
@Beverly would know.
Now that I've "called" them,
tune in later for more details!
There is no specific number you need to plant them in, and in most cases they won't finish off an entire plant, although it has happened when Monarchs lay more eggs on a plant than the plant can support, especially with non-native Tropical Milkweed. I would always suggest growing more than one in close proximity to each other. That allows for more eggs to be laid and a better chance that a caterpillar will be able to avoid predators.
If anyone here is new to Milkweed and curious about it: There are many different kinds. Some grow aggressively, some don't. I grow four different species, but there are many, many others out there to choose from.
The first, and my personal favorite, is called Orange Milkweed or Butterflyweed. This plant does not spread by rhizomes, and like all milkweeds, the seedpods take months to develop, so you have plenty of time to remove them if you choose to. The plant grows up to 3 feet tall, but often stays around 2 feet. Around here, it's one of the latest plants to start growing in Spring. It doesn't appear until May, sometimes well into the middle of the month, but it grows quickly and starts blooming in late June.
Here's another favorite. Swamp Milkweed can grow a couple feet taller than orange Milkweed, and doesn't grow as thick and full. This one spreads by rhizome, but very, very slowly. It starts blooming about a month later than Orange Milkweed. Many people grow this in large groupings along their houses. It attracts all kinds of butterflies and pollinators.
Third is Whorled Milkweed. This plant looks considerably different than the rest, though it has the typical milkweed flower. The flower is usually a greenish-white color. It has a very narrow stem and very narrow leaves. It grows around 2' tall but I wouldn't be surprised to see it reach 3'. It often times will flop over and rest on other plants. This one spreads by rhizome as well as seed. This photo was taken in the wild. Rabbits keep biting off the top of my plants so I haven't seen my own bloom yet.
The last one is the most common of them all: Common Milkweed. This is the one most commonly seen in the wild, along roadways, and along the edges of farm fields. Like Whorled Milkweed, this one also spreads by rhizome. This plant will not stay in one place. It tries to move around. It's something that you will possibly have to maintain depending on your gardening style. My garden is designed to let my plants grow and pop up wherever they'd like within the confines of the garden, so Common Milkweed has not been an issue for me. My neighbor has an asparagus garden where Common Milkweed also grows, and he also has no problem with it. He gets about 10-12 plants that pop up around his garden but they never escape it. As a bonus, if you grow a lot of them, you'll quickly notice their flowers have a scent that is very much like lilac!
If you're looking to attract Monarchs, there is one plant you'll want to pair with Milkweed.
While Monarchs
need milkweed to lay their eggs, their
favorite nectar source is, by far, Meadow Blazing Star.
It's a magnet to Monarchs. It's almost magical. I haven't had much success growing seeds, so you might want to buy a plant at a local nursery or online. No other Blazing Star specie will do what this one does. Monarchs will choose this plant over everything else. Just about every Monarch I saw in my yard last year was found on this plant. Many people report seeing nearly a dozen Monarchs on this plant, and Youtube videos show it to be true.
Lastly, one more plant suggestion is New England Aster. This the Monarch's favorite nectar source in Autumn as they're migrating back to Mexico. Nectar sources are scarce that time of year, so it's one of the most important plants for Monarchs. I did not see any Monarchs on mine last year, however mine were in their first year. I have personally seen about a dozen on a large, well established plant in the wild.
