http://www.thismia.com/A/Asclepias_tuberosa1.jpg

Asclepias tuberosa – butterfly milk weed – Apocynaceae Family

Class notes: Everything about milkweed is poisonous. However, monarch butterflies are able to withstand the poison. They lay their eggs/larvae on the leaves. Caterpillars eat the leaves and detoxify it to a degree which makes them poisonous to predators. Bullet proof plant in terms of disease and pest except for the chewed up leaves by the butterflies. However, out here there isn’t a lot of Monarch butterflies, so this isn’t a problem. Not weedy here as well.  Additionally, they have tuberous roots.

Site/Notes: Full sun, low to average watering and dry, sandy, slightly acid, fertile soil. Hardy, zone 3-9. Drought tolerant. Orange flowers, feathery seed heads. Prairie garden, rain garden. 24 inches by 24 inches. Found in dry fields and slopes.

Aesthetics: The pop of orange would look especially pleasing from a distance. I could see this on highway hills, creating a simmering effect with other wildflowers.

http://www.vtwonen.nl/tuinieren/border-pakketten/prairietuin-border/