Spermatophytes (seed plants): Angiosperms (flowering plants): Eudicots: Core Eudicots: Asterids: Lamiids: Gentianales
WEAKLEY'S FLORA (11/30/12):
Asclepias verticillata
FAMILY
Apocynaceae
Dig deeper at SERNEC, a consortium of southeastern herbaria.
Read more about Whorled Milkweed at Vascular Plants of North Carolina.
SYNONYMOUS WITH
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Asclepias verticillata
FAMILY
Asclepiadaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 157-01-003:
Asclepias verticillata
FAMILY
Asclepiadaceae
COMMON NAME:
Whorled Milkweed, Narrowleaf Milkweed
To see larger pictures, click or hover over the thumbnails.
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USDA-NRCS PLANTS Database / Britton, N.L., and A. Brown. 1913 pnd_asve_001_lvd
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Richard and Teresa Ware rtw_a_verticillata
June
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Richard and Teresa Ware rtw_a_verticillata_b
June
Horns very narrowly triangular, much surpassing the hoods, per Wildflowers in the Field and Forest.
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JK Marlow jkm130718_440
July McDowell County NC
Conspicuous whorls of linear leaves on a slender stem make this easy to ID, per Atlantic Coastal Plain Wildflowers.
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Will Stuart wil_8440701897_34aa2724ef
July Anson County NC
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Will Stuart wil_8447573271_aff39a84fe
July Anson County NC
The petals turned downward, the upright hoods topped by protruding horns, per Atlantic Coastal Plain Wildflowers.
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Steve Marlow snm102712_009
October Pickens County SC
Glassy Mountain Heritage Preserve
Narrow spindle-shaped follicles, 2-3" long, dehiscent along 1 suture, per Wildflowers of Tennessee, the Ohio Valley, and the Southern Appalachians.
WEAKLEY'S FLORA (11/30/12):
Asclepias verticillata
FAMILY
Apocynaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Asclepias verticillata
FAMILY
Asclepiadaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 157-01-003:
Asclepias verticillata
FAMILY
Asclepiadaceae
2285
Forb
Perennial
Native to the Carolinas & Georgia
Documented growing wild in GA NC SC
Uncommon
Look for it in barrens, thin soils of rock outcrops (esp mafic rocks), thin woodlands, sandhills, per Weakley's Flora
Click here to see a more detailed map from University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Herbarium,
or click here to see a map from SERNEC, a consortium of southeastern herbaria.
...Dry
DOES THE PLANT HAVE "MILKY SAP"?
Has milky sap (latex)
LEAVES:
Simple
Mostly in whorls of 3-6 (sometimes opposite)
FLOWER:
Summer/Fall
Greenish-white petals
often tipped with rose-purple
Bisexual
Radially symmetrical
5-merous
5-lobed corolla
Superior ovary
Flowers in 2-8 umbels from upper leaf axils
FRUIT:
Summer/Fall
Follicle
TO LEARN MORE about this plant, look it up in a good book!
- All About South Carolina Wildflowers p110
- Atlantic Coastal Plain Wildflowers p114
- Guide to the Wildflowers of SC p229
- Native Alternatives to Invasive Plants p154
- Wildflowers of the Atlantic Southeast p136
- Wildflowers of the Eastern United States p068
- Wildflowers in the Field and Forest p354
- Wildflowers of Tennessee p194
- Wildflowers of Tennessee, the Ohio Valley, and the Southern Appalachians p231
- Wildflowers of the Southern Mountains p129
- Wildflowers of the Sandhills Region p124