Native Plants
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Wednesday - April 22, 2015
From: Rosanky, TX
Region: Southwest
Topic: Seed and Plant Sources, Butterfly Gardens, Herbs/Forbs
Title: sources of milkweed in Bastrop, Texas
Answered by: Guy Thompson
QUESTION:
Where can I buy milkweed in Bastrop County? Can I plant in containers in garden soil? ThanksANSWER:
There has been a rush to plant milkweed as host plants for Monarch caterpillars. Consequently, the supply of suitable milkweed species has been exhausted at many commercial growers. This is aggrevated by the difficulty in obtaining milkweed seeds. The only milkweed now available in many nurseries is Asclepias curassavica, Tropical milkweed, whose seeds are easy to obtain. Some scientists believe that this species can do more harm than good for Monarchs because it continues to bloom well into fall, encouraging Monarchs to lag behind rather than migrate south. If you can find Tropical milkweed, it would be advisable to cut back the vegetative portions in early fall. Or you could plant the milkweed in a pot and move the pot indoors.
I have recently seen Tropical milkweed for sale in Austin nurseries, such as Barton Springs Nursery. If you are lucky you might find Asclepias tuberosa (Butterflyweed), a much more desirable native milkweed. Check in Bastrop nurseries or other local nurseries. They will be increasing their stock as rapidly as possible.
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