States
North CarolinaTennesseeGeorgiaSouth CarolinaKentuckyAlabamaArkansasFloridaLouisianaMississippiVirginiaWest Virginia
Menu

Red Milkweed

Asclepias rubra

In the Carolinas and Georgia, found in pocosin ecotones, wet pine savannas, seepage bogs in longleaf pine sandhills, seepage swamps. Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Carolinas & Georgia edition What its natural habitat tells you

66
Strong

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

Profile 100%

Height
1.5–3 feet
Spread
10–12 inches
Light
Full sun, Partial shade
Soil moisture
Usually moist

Space about 1 ft apart from its recorded spread, about 100 per 100 sq ft. Enter your bed size for a count

Will it fit your yard?

At a glance

Life cycle
Perennial
Bloom
April to September
Fruiting season
July to October

Not yet recorded · Leaves

County records are not available.

Natural habitats

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

1 of 2

Seeps and springs

Places where groundwater keeps the soil or rock wet, such as seepage slopes and spring runs.

Swamps

Forested wetlands with standing water much of the year, such as cypress and gum swamps.

All habitats

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
Hardiness
Zones 6a–9b
Soil pH
Acidic
Flower color
Pink or purple
Fruit begins
July
Fruit ends
October

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

Growing sources and scope

Conservation status

Arkansas rankSNR
Global rankG4G5
AR statusNot verified
Federal statusNot verified

Conservation source Global and federal source

In your garden

Will it fit your yard?

Check this plant against your county, sun and soil moisture. Conditions are checked in your browser.

Choose a county to begin.

How to check your spot

Sources