July - August 



Damp places, roadsides 



COMMON MILKWEED 



Asclepias syriaca L. 



The tall. >|ilfii(ii(l milkwivd plant alonjr the 

 wct'dy road is one of the most remarkable 

 jilaiits to ho found at any season. It is ex- 

 tremely comj)li(ate(l in its nower nieehanisnu hears a milky juice which 

 is akin to caoutchouc (the sap of the ruhher tre<>). has silk-tufted .seed.s 

 who.se fluff.s have heen used instead of kapok, is edihlt^ as a y»)un<r plant 

 hut poisonous to cattle when the jjlants mature. 



I'lie milkweed stalk ^lows early in sprin«i" fi'om a deep, jieronnial 

 tap root. The youn^ sh(Kits are .soft and downy, full of that tyi)ical milky 

 juice which tiow.s from any rut on the plant, in .hine there apjM^ar ti^rht 

 clusters of anirlod. rouiul huds arran,ir(>d in a nu)saic so that each hud 

 jret.s sunshine. Thi\v hur.^t, and now therc is a wonderfid globe of per- 

 fumed, intricate blossoms. The ilower is composed of five nect<ir hoi'us 

 with a keyhole-like niche l)etwi'en, and five recuned .>;e])als. When a lly or 

 bee comes for nectar, it cannot uc't a foothold on the lightly jioised Ilower, 

 .so almost invariably its foot slips into the niche between the honey 

 horn.?. This holds the insect firndy while it sips nectar and at the same 

 time, in its struggles to free it.self, scra])es off pollen .>;acs obtained from 

 a Ilower previously visited. T's\ially the insect is ai)le to free itself by 

 pulling its foot upward and out. and Hies off with new pollinia to cany 

 to the next flower. Often, though, the in.sect is trapped and hangs there 

 dead. 



Although there iire dozens of ihnvers in the cluster, only two or three 

 are properly pollinated and these form the laige downy ])<k1s full of silk- 

 plumed seeds. The pods open in autumn, and the silk-{)arachuted seeds 

 float off to other places to ])lant more milkweeds for the coming year. 



178 



