Swamp Milkweed

Asclepias incarnata

71

Strong

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

Profile 100%

Height: 3–5 feet
Spread: 2–3 feet
Light: Full sun, Partial shade
Soil moisture: Usually moist

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

Will it fit your yard?

Asclepias incarnata — bloom photograph — Jasper Shide · CC0 · Original photograph

At a glance

Life cycle: Perennial
Leaves: Deciduous
Bloom: Fall
Fruiting season: Spring to fall

Recorded in 30 Florida counties.

Ecological relationships

Who uses this plant?

What these records mean

15CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including FL

Genus host records with ranges including FL · Asclepias

Danaus plexippusMonarch
Agathodes monstralisSky-Pointing Moth
Cycnia collarisUnexpected Cycnia
Cycnia teneraDelicate Cycnia, Dogbane Tiger Moth
Danaus eresimusSoldier, Tropical Queen
Danaus gilippusQueen
Euchaetes egleMilkweed Tussock Moth or Milkweed Tiger Moth
Hyalophora cecropiaCecropia Silkmoth, Cecropia Moth
Platynota flavedanaBlack-Shaded Platynota
Pygarctia spragueiSprague's Pygarctia Moth

Show all 15

Pyrrharctia isabellaIsabella Tiger Moth, Banded Woolybear
Spodoptera frugiperdaFall Armyworm Moth
Strymon melinusGray Hairstreak
Trichordestra legitimaStriped Garden Caterpillar Moth
Pygarctia eglenensis

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

Beetles 2

Acmaeodera pulchella
Trichius piger

Flower visits · Carlinville, Illinois, USA

Flies 10

Cistogaster occidua
Conops xanthopareus
Ennyomma globosa
Opsidia gonioides
Panzeria radicum
Phasioclista metallica
Physocephala tibialis
Scepsis fulvicollis
Spallanzania hesperidarum
Stratiomyia meigenii

Flower visits · Carlinville, Illinois, USA

Adult butterflies / moths 10

Achalarus lycidas
Anosia plexippus
Argynnis cybele
Euphyes verna
Limochores taumas
Papilio asterias
Pholisora catullus
Phyciodes tharos
Speyeria idalia
Vanessa atalanta

Flower visits · Carlinville, Illinois, USA

Other wasps 23

Ageniella accepta
Ammobia ichneumonea
Ammobia nuda
Ammobia pennsylvanica
Bembix nubillipennis
Bembix spinolae
Cerceris clypeata
Cerceris fumipennis
Eumenes fraternus
Isodontia apicalis

Show all 23

Isodontia macrocephala
Leionotus arvensis
Polistes pallipes
Polistes rubiginosus
Polistes variatus
Priononyx atrata
Priononyx thomae
Pseudoplisus phaleratus
Tachytes distinctus
Tachytes mandibularis
Tachytes pepticus
Vespula maculata
Vespula vidua

Flower visits · Carlinville, Illinois, USA

Other insects 1

Lygaeus turcicus

Flower visits · Carlinville, Illinois, USA

No records yet · Ants

Growing and identification

Plant details

Family: Apocynaceae
Hardiness: Zones 3a–9b
Soil pH: Acidic to neutral
Flower color: Pink or white
Growth rate: Moderate
Growth habit: Spreads by rhizomes
Foliage color: Green
Fruit begins: Spring
Fruit ends: Fall

What its natural habitat tells you

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

Growing sources and scope

Bloom · “Fall” · USDA PLANTS (ranked first; Prairie Moon 2026 Cultural Guide differs) · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
Flower color · “Pink or white” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; USDA PLANTS, Prairie Moon 2026 Cultural Guide differ)
Foliage color · “Green” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
Fruit begins · “Spring” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
Fruit ends · “Fall” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
Growth habit · “Spreads by rhizomes” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
Growth rate · “Moderate” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
Hardiness · “Zones 3a–9b” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
Height · “3–5 feet” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; Tennessee Smart Yards, USDA PLANTS, Minnesota Wildflowers, Prairie Moon 2026 Cultural Guide differ)
Leaves · “Deciduous” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
Life cycle · “Perennial” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
Light · “Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day); Partial shade (direct sunlight only part of the day, 2-6 hours)” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; Tennessee Smart Yards, Prairie Moon 2026 Cultural Guide differ)
Soil · “Moist; Occasionally wet” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; Tennessee Smart Yards, Prairie Moon 2026 Cultural Guide differ)
Soil pH · “Acidic to neutral” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
Spread · “2–3 feet” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox

Conservation status

Florida rank	SNR
Global rank	G5
FL status	Not verified
Federal status	Not verified

Conservation source Global and federal source

In your garden

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How to check your spot

Growing cautions

Self-seeds. Re-seeds to a modest degree. Tennessee Smart Yards

For planning only; these do not change the score or Fit.

Sources