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Clasping Milkweed

Asclepias amplexicaulis

In the Carolinas and Georgia, found in longleaf pine sandhills, barrens, sandy prairies, woodland margins, other dry woodlands of various types. Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Carolinas & Georgia edition What its natural habitat tells you

66
Strong

Native to Arkansas. How scores work Is it native here?

Profile 100%

Height
1–4 feet
Spread
2–3 feet
Light
Full sun, Partial shade
Soil moisture
Dry to moist

Space about 2.5 ft apart from its recorded spread, about 16 per 100 sq ft. Enter your bed size for a count

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At a glance

Life cycle
Perennial
Bloom
Spring and summer

Not yet recorded · Leaves

Recorded in 23 Arkansas counties.

Natural habitats

Places it grows wild. Not a planting requirement. Each habitat page lists the plants and wildlife also found there.

1 of 3

Prairies and grasslands

Open, grass-dominated places kept open by fire, grazing or thin soil, from tallgrass prairie to Piedmont prairies.

Forest edges and thickets

Borders of forests, clearings and shrubby thickets.

Dry forests and woodlands

Forests and open woodlands on dry ridges and slopes, often oak or pine.

All habitats

Also found with this plant

Wildlife whose habitat models include habitats this plant grows in, in Arkansas. Shared habitat, not food. 61 animals.

All wildlife of Arkansas

Ecological relationships

Who uses this plant?

What these records mean

12CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including AR

Genus host records with ranges including AR · Asclepias

  • Danaus plexippusMonarch
  • Cycnia collarisUnexpected Cycnia
  • Cycnia teneraDelicate Cycnia, Dogbane Tiger Moth
  • Euchaetes egleMilkweed Tussock Moth or Milkweed Tiger Moth
  • Hyalophora cecropiaCecropia Silkmoth, Cecropia Moth
  • Papaipema nebrisStalk Borer
  • Platynota flavedanaBlack-Shaded Platynota
  • Pygarctia spragueiSprague's Pygarctia Moth
  • Pyrrharctia isabellaIsabella Tiger Moth, Banded Woolybear
  • Spodoptera frugiperdaFall Armyworm Moth
Show all 12
  • Strymon melinusGray Hairstreak
  • Trichordestra legitimaStriped Garden Caterpillar Moth
Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)
59BeesSoutheastern regional records

Southeastern regional records · Asclepias

Individual names are not available yet.

Noori, Seltmann & Orr 2026, A curated and integrated dataset for exploring global bee-plant interactions (GloBI), Zenodo, CC BY 4.0
0Specialist beesPollen specialists
1BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim

Recorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim · Asclepias

  • Ortalis vetulaPlain Chachalaca
Hurlbert, Olsen, Sawyer & Winner 2021, Avian Diet Database, Scientific Data 8: 260 (CC0)

Direct food only: birds recorded eating this genus across North America. Caterpillars on host plants also feed nesting birds. NC Native Plant Society: butterfly gardening

No records yet · Ants · Beetles · Flies · Adult butterflies / moths · Other wasps · Other insects

Growing and identification

Plant details

Family
Apocynaceae
Soil pH
Neutral
Flower color
Pink

Safety has not been reviewed for this plant; check toxicity and thorns before planting.

Growing sources and scope
Also known as

Sand Milkweed

Conservation status

Arkansas rankSNR
Global rankG5
AR statusNot verified
Federal statusNot verified

Conservation source Global and federal source

In your garden

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Sources