Note: This week there are TWO Roadside Wildflowers of the Week.

Sullivant's Milkweed (Asclepias sullivantii) is a perennial with deep, fleshy rhizomes.  Vegetative reproduction is common. It forms nice clones such as those pictured here.  Regal Fritillary butterflies are closely associated with this plant, one of the best bee and butterfly plants on the prairies and along roadsides. Most milkweeds are pollinated by large bees and wasps and this plant attracts an abundance of both. It is also visited by moths at night. It is a host for Monarch Butterflies, but not a particularly good one since it contains lots of latex. Milkweeds generally have an abundance of nectar relative to most plants in the same habitat.  It is classified as a threatened species in some states where prairies have been largely eliminated.  It is sometimes confused with Common Milkweed, a more widely distributed plant often found in more disturbed sites.

Support your natural roadsides by supporting Audubon of Kansas! Donate Now!

Thanks to Chip Taylor, director of Monarch Watch (http://www.MonarchWatch.org/) for information on this and other plants important as habitat for pollinating insects.

Photos made by Ron Klataske along Highway 177 on the Flint Hills Scenic Byway between Council Grove and Strong City.

To nominate a native wildflower, or to send photos of roadside vegation, click here.