This is a plant and seed list I created in 2018 for my Monarch Waystations 101 class I taught at the Waterfront Botanical Gardens in Louisville, Kentucky.

1. Milkweed Observations
Name (common/scientific) Bloom color Height Key observations
Rose milkweed / Asclepias incarnata Rose/white 4’ ­Grows well in local soil
✩✩✩✩ ­Low/No maintenance
­Caterpillars LOVE IT!
Orange milkweed / Asclepias tuberosa Orange 2’ ­Grows well in local soil
✩✩✩✩ ­Small size fits nicely in landscaping
­Popular with caterpillars
Prairie Milkweed / Asclepias sullivantii Pink 3’ ­Similar to Common, but less invasive
✩✩✩ ­Easy to start from seed, but we had trouble once transplanted
Poke milkweed / Asclepias exaltata White 5’ ­Grows in partial shade
✩✩✩ ­Sows from seed easily
­Thin, wide, flat leaves
Tall Green milkweed / Asclepias hirtella White 4’ ­Narrow, alternating leaves
✩ ­Caterpillars can quickly devour the thin, skinny leaves
­Not a great food source, due to leaf size
Spider Milkweed / Asclepias viridis Green 1’ ­Dense, squat grower
✩ ­Works nicely in landscape
­First year were too small to attract Monarchs
Tropical milkweed / Asclepias curassavica Red / Gold 3­4’ ­Popular with Monarchs
­Not native to our area, largely an annual
­Invasive in some southern states
­OE Spore concern: www.monarchjointventure.org
Common milkweed / Asclepias syriaca Pink/white 2’­4’ ­Grows aggressively through rhizomes
­Challenging to control
­Large fleshy leaves
Source: Monarch Waystations 101 Chris Padgett 24 February 2018 #WBGMonarchs

2. Nectar Sources
Name (common/scientific)
Annuals
Blanket Flower (Gaillardia)
Cleome (Cleome)
Cosmos (Cosmos)
French Marigold (Tagetes patula)
✩✩✩ Lantana (Lantana)
✩✩✩ Mexican sunflower/Torch (Tithonia)
Sweet William (Dianthus)
Thistle (Centaurea)
Verbena (Verbena)
✩✩✩ Zinnia (Zinnia)
* Other Annual Nectar Sources
Perennials
Anemone
✩✩✩ Bee balm (Monarda)
Black eyed Susan (Rudbeckia)
Blazingstar/Gayfeather (Liatris)
✩✩✩ Butterfly Bush (Buddleia)
Coreopsis (Coreopsis)
Hollyhock (Alcea)
Ironweed (Vernonia)
Joe Pye Weed (Eupatorium purpureum)
Mallow (Malva)
Phlox (Phlox)
Purple coneflower (Echinacea purpurea)
✩✩✩ Sedum (Senna)
Salvia
* Other Perennial Nectar Sources
Source: Monarch Waystations 101 Chris Padgett 24 February 2018 #WBGMonarchs