Spermatophytes (seed plants): Angiosperms (flowering plants): Eudicots: Core Eudicots: Asterids: Lamiids: Gentianales
WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/24/22):
Asclepias perennis
FAMILY
Apocynaceae
Go to FSUS key
Dig deeper at SERNEC, a consortium of southeastern herbaria.
Read more about Aquatic Milkweed at Vascular Plants of North Carolina.
See diagrams of milkweed flower structure at Wayne's Word.
SYNONYMOUS WITH
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Asclepias perennis
FAMILY
Asclepiadaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 157-01-002:
Asclepias perennis FAMILY Asclepiadaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)
Asclepias perennis
COMMON NAME:
Swamp Milkweed, Swampforest Milkweed, Swamp White Milkweed, Aquatic Milkweed
To see larger pictures, click or hover over the thumbnails.
)
USDA-NRCS PLANTS Database / Britton, N.L., and A. Brown. 1913 pnd_aspe_001_lvd
)
John B. Nelson jbn_5745134374_99a0cca6bf
May
Flowers in 1-2" wide axillary umbels, hoods with prominent protruding horns, per Atlantic Coastal Plain Wildflowers (Nelson, 2006).
)
JK Marlow jkm190702_9698
July Greenville County SC
In cultivation
)
JK Marlow jkm190702_9700
July Greenville County SC
In cultivation
)
JK Marlow jkm190702_9701
July Greenville County SC
In cultivation
The 12-24" stems are conspicuously leafy, per Atlantic Coastal Plain Wildflowers (Nelson, 2006).
)
JK Marlow jkm190702_9702
July Greenville County SC
In cultivation
Leaves elliptic to lanceolate, 6-12cm long, 1-3cm wide, per Vascular Flora of the Carolinas (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968).
WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/24/22):
Asclepias perennis
FAMILY
Apocynaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Asclepias perennis
FAMILY
Asclepiadaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 157-01-002:
Asclepias perennis
FAMILY
Asclepiadaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)
Asclepias perennis
2882
Forb
Perennial
Habitat: Cypress-gum swamps, bottomland hardwood forests, marshes, per Weakley's Flora
Native to the Carolinas & Georgia
Common in Coastal Plain of GA & SC (rare in NC)
CLICK HERE to see a map, notes, and images from Weakley's Flora of the Southeastern US.
DOES THE PLANT HAVE "MILKY SAP"?
Has milky sap (latex)
LEAVES:
Simple
Opposite
Leaves have petioles.
FLOWER:
Spring/Summer
White
Radially symmetrical
5-merous
5-lobed corolla, lobes reflexed
Superior ovary
Bisexual
Flowers in 2-4 umbels, from upper leaf axils or appearing terminal
FRUIT:
Summer/Fall
Follicle
TO LEARN MORE about this plant, look it up in a good book!
- All About South Carolina Wildflowers (Midgley, 1999) p110
- Atlantic Coastal Plain Wildflowers (Nelson, 2006) p113
- Wildflowers of the Atlantic Southeast (Cotterman, Waitt, & Weakley, 2019) p127
- Wildflowers of the Carolina Lowcountry (Porcher, 1995) p125
- Wildflowers of the Eastern United States (Duncan & Duncan, 1999) p067
- Field Guide to the Wildflowers of Georgia (Chafin, 2016) p050
- Wildflowers of Tennessee (Carman, 2005) p191
- Wildflowers of Tennessee, the Ohio Valley, and the Southern Appalachians (Horn, Cathcart, Hemmerly, & Duhl, 2005) p228
If a search such as "Carex leptalea var. leptalea" doesn't deliver the results you want, try "Carex leptalea".
Or, to minimize chances of a misspelling, try just "Carex le".
Less is more: If "pencil flower" doesn't deliver the results you want, try "pencil".