Asclepias vestita

Common Names

Woolly Milkweed, Parish's Woolly Milkweed

Summary

Native to California, Woolly Milkweed is a robust perennial with an upright to spreading habit, reaching about 1.5–3 ft tall and 3–4 ft wide. Foliage is gray-green and woolly-hairy, giving a fuzzy texture, and the inflorescences are umbels of yellowish-white to cream flowers, sometimes with a purple tint, followed by large yellowish follicles bearing silky-haired seeds.

It prefers full sun and well-drained soils with low to moderate water, is drought-tolerant, and suited to chaparral, foothill woodland, and valley grassland landscapes; hardy in USDA zones 7–10, with bloom from April to June. It propagates by seed and rhizomes and is not invasive; it serves as a host plant for monarch and queen butterflies and provides nectar for other butterflies, skippers, bees, and wasps; contains alkaloids and is poisonous if ingested.

Lifecycle

Perennial

Height

1.5-3 feet

Spread

1-4 feet

Hardiness Zones

Zones 7-10

Sunlight Requirements

Ideally full sun. Tolerates partial sun

Soil Type

Well-drained sandy, rocky, and decomposed granite soils (pH 6–8)

Soil Drainage

Well-drained soil

Soil pH

6-8

Bloom Color

White to cream or yellow, yellowish forms, sometimes with a purple or brown tint

Bloom Time

Spring

Foliage Color

Gray-green

Fall Foliage Color

No autumn foliage

Leaf Lifecycle

Deciduous

Growth Rate

Fast

Seasons of Interest

Spring, Summer, Winter

Propagation Methods

Seeds, Division

Attracts Wildlife

Attracts butterflies, other pollinators, birds