// SPECIES PROFILE · PERENNIAL · NATIVE

Swamp Milkweed

Asclepias incarnata

The best-behaved milkweed for the perennial border — swamp milkweed forms tidy clumps that don't spread aggressively, with deep pink (or pure white in 'Ice Ballet') flat-topped flower clusters that bloom for weeks in midsummer.

// QUICK FACTS

Family: Apocynaceae
Group: perennial
Native range: E. & C. North America; common in OK along streams
USDA hardiness: Zones 3–9
Mature size: 3–5 ft
Sun: Full sun
Water: Wet to average; tolerates ordinary garden soil
Wildlife value: Monarch host; bumblebee + swallowtail favorite; goldfinch use floss for nests
Ecological role: monarch host · clump-forming · wet to average soils

Swamp Milkweed (Asclepias incarnata) — *Asclepias incarnata*. Photo via Wikipedia / Wikimedia Commons.

Field Notes

[ growing · ecology · siting · care ]

Despite the name, perfectly happy in average garden soil with normal watering. The most pollinator-traffic-heavy plant you can put in a Tulsa garden — expect monarchs, swallowtails, and dozens of native bee species.

Why it's on this list: monarch host · clump-forming · wet to average soils. Part of Rooted Revival's NE Oklahoma plant catalog — natives, ecologically positive non-invasive cultivars, and food crops worth growing in the Tulsa region.

Companion Planting

[ guild · polyculture · cross-layer pairings ]

Along a stream or seasonal floodplain, swamp milkweed pairs naturally with: american hornbeam (Carpinus caroliniana), american elderberry (Sambucus canadensis), eastern gamagrass (Tripsacum dactyloides), cowpea / black-eyed pea (Vigna unguiculata), joe-pye weed (Eutrochium purpureum), and american sycamore (Platanus occidentalis).

Combine swamp milkweed with the warm-season grasses listed above for a self-sustaining matrix.

Photo Reference

// Asclepias incarnata — habit
Photo: eeglaser (iNaturalist, CC0)