Is poke weed a milkweed?

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Kathy Cummings

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Jun 5, 2022, 1:24:43 PM6/5/22
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Milkweed Or Pokeweed Previous Next Your plant may be a milkweed; please send a long shot of the entire plant, showing its growth habit and size and we'll confirm. Milkweed is a native perennial plant that is about 2-3′ tall. This species is sometimes grown in gardens designed to attract butterflies (especially monarchs).
Poke Milkweed Shade tolerant, Asclepias exaltata (Poke Milkweed) is a perennial wildflower prized for its spreading umbels of white to pink flowers produced in summer. Borne on individual pedicels, the flowers weep downward, resembling small fireworks. Strikingly aromatic when in bloom, they are a great source of nectar for butterflies.
Poke Milkweed (Asclepias exaltata) Description: This perennial wildflower is 2-6' tall and usually unbranched. The central stem is light green to purplish green, terete, and glabrous. Opposite pairs of leaves about 3-8" long and 1-3" across occur along this stem; they are lanceolate-elliptic to ovate and smooth along their margins.
Found in upland woods to rich woodland openings, Poke Milkweed thrives in dappled to full shade. It has oval leaves, growing opposite on stems that can reach five feet, considerably taller than other milkweed species. Large clusters of white to cream, tinted with purple and green, flowers droop elegantly on slender stalks.


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