so, will they eat the stems, or do I have to have the leaves? My success rate is really good. By storing the seed in a cold area like a fridge over Winter, you are directly mimicking this natural process. The nurseries don’t seem to be any help. In certain situations, aphids or whitefly can overrun your milkweed plants. Hi Ralph, I’ve never heard of anyone doing this, so I would suggest testing a plant. Joepyeweed, There is a big difference between the Asclepius syriaca that is in my garden, and the syriaca growing wild certain places on the property. Pruning can be done in fall but isn’t really a necessary part of winterizing milkweed plants. Thank Tony, for the leafhopper damaged post. What can I do to save the plant? I noticed I do have some plants with blackish spots and not so nice looking. I have a lot of milkweed- probably 15 different patches throughout my yard. Hi Brenda, you could always try spraying leaves with a hydrogen peroxide solution and/or removing affected leaves as is listed in the post…, Will the peroxide help with rust spots do the leaves and will it hurt the caterpillars . Is it a light dusting or a drench? The wings that don’t open and deformed chrysalises would make me thing there has been an OE infestation. What is it. It looks like tiny black / brown dots all over the underside and almost like bruised or wet spots on the top side. Milkweed is the host plant for the monarch butterfly. Hello! Is there a way to send you an electronic picture. I would removing the affected leaves and then spray the other leaves with the hydrogen peroxide mix listed in the post to see if that makes a difference. It is working its way up from the bottom of the plants. This was a very helpful article on fungus. Cut back to 4″ above soil level. And, if you are concerned about your plants self-seeding in unwanted places it's easy to remove the large seedpods just before they split open and release their seeds in the fall. He leaves look healthy otherwise. They’re not planted very close together. Hi Terry, I use this more preventatively at the beginning of the season and overwintering plants indoors. I’ve not been successful with the last 80+ caterpillars. I don’t spray monarch eggs/caterpillars directly with hydrogen peroxide and not sure if/how it would affect them. The causes of the caterpillars deaths are all different. Unfortunately wasps and other predators get them. Over the years, I’ve been less concerned about what’s ailing our milkweed, and more concerned about treating it early. Thin out the herd– if your milkweed plants are crowded, your milkweed patch can become a breeding ground for fungi. Of course it could be the incoming monarchs and their eggs but to me that just doesn’t seem right. As soon as the seeds germinate, they respond to the heat by putting up tall, skinny stems before leaf production has a chance to catch up. And if you want to send me the leaves... feel free. This way you can find caterpillars and protect the plants. Milkweed plants in winter are valued by birds and small animals who use their natural fibers and seed fluff in their nests. I would not spray while they are present. Several seemed to have tried to chrysallis to early since I see the silky black pile on the leaf and they were very small. I’m in Houston and have been raising asclepias for 25 years. 4. Everything is super clean. There are over 100 species of milkweed in North America and the diversity of foliage and flower color is quite amazing. The stems and lea… Common milkweed plants grow to about 2 to 4 feet in height, with a thin, vertical growth habit. Here’s more info: As for the rest, are you in a region with increased mosquito spraying this season? Well I do have a shovel in the back of my truck at all times, so I could dig some roots... Usually I get caterpillars on my asclepias incanarta, but this year they were all on the syriaca. I live in Sarasota,Fl. Thanks for the offer docmom, but all of the babies are hanging j's right now, except for one... by the time you snail mail me anything - the last one will be done eating. Hydrogen peroxide also adds more oxygen to the soil to prevent root rot. Milkweed seeds in nature undergo a process called stratification where their outer shell is cracked by the cold winter weather, allowing the seed to sprout in Spring. We remove any problem leaves and treat soil preventatively with hydrogen peroxide which has worked well for us. I have them in some pretty sunny places, like full sun and heat most of the day. It has to be the milkweed, do you think the late season milkweed (tropical) could have oem that doesn’t wash off. Please help, I still have 2 cages with cats. The Myths to Bust Myth #1: Milkweed is an invasive weed. It killed the aphids, didn’t harm the butterfly weed and the cats seemed to be ok. Hi Allie…hard to say. I have used the hydrogen peroxide solution with some success. All my tropical milkweed has the black spots and then turns yellow. The plant yeilds large 4" round clusters of mauve flowers with broad leaves and thick stems. Collect milkweed seeds in late fall when the seed pods are brown and open, or green and easy to pop open. It can be especially bad with curassavica. I'd plant it! This article mentions using a hydrogen peroxide mix to kill fungus. They have basically “keeled over” on a branch and died. Check-out this wonderful seed-harvesting tutorial over at Monarch Butterfly Garden to learn how. All that aside, I'm finding my interest growing in using this or related cultivars as an annual up here, for strictly summer use (obviously). Third, seedlings that are falling over can be more prone to disease and pests. 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