This native perennial has stems up to 3 feet tall and alternate leaves 2-4 inches long and less than 1 inch wide (A). The stem contains a watery sap rather than the milky juice typical of milkweeds. Several groups of 10-15 individual orange to orange-red flowers, unique to the milkweeds, combine to form a flat-topped cluster, one of our showiest prairie displays (B,C).
Grows in dry to moist but well-drained prairies, flowering from June through August. This flower is uncommon in Knull and Nebraska Prairies at Neale Woods. It is rare in the Floodplain Prairie restoration at Fontenelle Forest where a single plant was identified in 2009.
The genus name Asclepias, derived from the name of the Greek god of healing and medicine, attests to the perceived historical importance of the healing properties of plants in the milkweed family. Preparations from the root were used by Native Americans and settlers for a variety of ailments including respiratory conditions, as the other common name “Pleurisy Root” suggests.
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