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sunset-flower
Hi Fellow gardeners.Can any body tell the proper name for this plant?.I grew it from seed last year which i purchased from china.It was advertised as Sunset flower,i have also seen it as Milk weed.Does any body know anything about this plant?.It has just come into flower this week and looks stunning.Answers on the back of a post card please.Sorry only joking,But i would like your advice.
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asclepias, don't know which one, sorry
In the sticks near Peterborough
Thanks nut,your a star.I will now try to locate it.
just found some info on it.
Asclepias syriaca, commonly called common milkweed, butterfly flower, silkweed, silky swallow-wort, and Virginia silkweed, is a species of flowering plant. It is in the genus Asclepias, the milkweeds. This species is native to most of North America east of the Rocky Mountains, excluding the drier parts of the Prairies. It grows in sandy soils and sunny areas. It was one of the earliest North American species described in Cornut's 1635 work Canadensium Plantarum Historia. The specific name was reused by Linnaeus due to Cornut's confusion with a species from Asia Minor.
Common milkweed is a perennial herb growing to 1–2 m tall from a rhizome. The stem and all parts of the plants produce a white latex when broken. The leaves are opposite, simple broad ovate-lanceolate, 7–25 cm long and 3–12 cm broad, usually with an undulate margin and a red-colored main vein. They have very short petioles and velvety undersides.
The fragrant flowers are grouped in several spherical umbels. The individual flowers are 1–2 cm in diameter with five cornate hoods. The seeds have long, white, flossy hairs and are encased in large follicles.
GROWING CONDITIONSWater Use: Low
Light Requirement: Sun , Part Shade
Soil Moisture: Dry , Moist
CaCO3 Tolerance: Medium
Drought Tolerance: High
Soil Description: Prefers well-drained sandy soils. Tolerates drought.
Conditions Comments: Butterfly weed has an interesting and unusual flower structure. Plant it among other mid-sized perennials. Inevitably butterfly weed will get aphids; you can leave them for ladybugs to eat or spray the insects and foliage with soapy water. Aphids can also be removed by blasting the plant with a high pressure stream of water.