Asclepias speciosa – Showy Milkweed – Asclepiadaceae (The Milkweed Family)

Description Asclepias speciosa is the western North American counterpart of the eastern A. syriaca, with upright stems bearing oblong leaves and topped by dense three-inch globes of fragrant, pink, star-shaped flowers that attract butterflies and a wide range of pollinators to their nectar. Asclepias speciosa is a larval host plant for the western North American population of monarch butterflies that overwinter each year in California before making their trek north into southern BC. Showy milkweed spreads by underground rhizomes. Grow in a pot or sink a pot of it in the ground, or allow it to spread in naturalized settings. Drought-tolerant. Deer resistant.