Butterfly Weed

Asclepias tuberosa

flower

Butterfly Weed is the orange-flowered milkweed (Asclepias tuberosa), a tough native perennial of dry prairies and roadsides across most of the eastern and central US. Flat-topped clusters of brilliant orange (sometimes yellow) blooms top 1 to 2 ft stems from early to late summer, drawing every pollinator in the neighborhood. As a true milkweed it is a host plant for monarch caterpillars, which eat the foliage, while the flowers feed adult monarchs, swallowtails, fritillaries, and native bees. Unlike other milkweeds it has clear (not milky) sap and a deep taproot that makes it intensely drought-tolerant but resentful of transplanting once established.

✅ Plant alongside

Good neighbors that attract beneficial insects or deter pests

• Purple Coneflower — Shares the same lean sunny conditions and extends the pollinator buffet through summer
• Bee Balm — Draws hummingbirds and bees that also work the milkweed flowers
• Black-Eyed Susan — Prairie companion with overlapping bloom and the same drought tolerance
• Blazing Star — Vertical accent that pairs with the flat milkweed heads and feeds the same butterflies

🛡️ Pest & disease prevention

Proactive ways to stop trouble before it starts — tap a name with an arrow for its full guide

• Oleander aphids →

  The bright-yellow aphids cluster on stems and pods - blast them off with water or simply leave them, since ladybugs and lacewings usually clean them up and they rarely harm the plant

• Milkweed bugs →

  Orange-and-black seed bugs feed on pods; tolerate them as part of the milkweed ecosystem or remove pods if you want to limit them

🌸 Blooms & cutting

Butterfly Weed is grown for the garden and for wildlife rather than the vase, though the orange umbels do cut reasonably well - sear the cut stem in hot water for a few seconds to stop the sap and extend vase life. For the pollinator garden, leave the flowers to feed butterflies and the foliage to feed monarch caterpillars. Let some seed pods ripen and split if you want it to self-sow, or snip them off to keep the planting tidy.

🥗 Nutrition & benefits

Butterfly Weed is one of the single most valuable pollinator plants you can grow: it is a larval host for the monarch butterfly, whose caterpillars feed only on milkweeds, and its nectar feeds adult monarchs, swallowtails, fritillaries, and many native bees. Planting it directly supports the threatened monarch migration. Note that, like all milkweeds, the foliage is toxic if eaten by people or pets.

⚠️ Toxicity & safety

Mildly toxic - do not eat. Like other milkweeds, all parts contain cardiac glycosides; eating them can cause stomach upset, nausea, and vomiting. Unlike most milkweeds its sap is clear rather than milky, but that sap can still irritate skin and eyes, so wear gloves when handling. It is a superb pollinator and monarch host plant - grow it, just do not eat it.