Search

Zizotes Milkweed

Asclepias oenotheroides

Side-cluster Milkweed

About This Plant

Fun sun or partial shade. Perennial, with mounding foliage up to 24 inches tall and wide. Clusters of small, intricate pale green flowers appear throughout the year, followed by conspicuous green seed follicles. Zizotes is a tough, mowable milkweed that grows wild in many landscapes — sun, shade, wet, or dry. The wavy leaf margins resemble primrose, hence the species name “oenotheroides.” Milkweed is the only host plant for monarch caterpillars.

Origins: Texas and Northern Mexico

Maintenance

None, beyond the care needed to establish. Zizotes is often found on grassy roadsides, where it gets mowed regularly. To promote monarch caterpillars, though, avoid mowing the zizotes during April and May, when monarch caterpillars are present on the leaves.

A mowable milkweed that can be grown in any landscape -- sun, shade, wet, or dry.

Min. Height: 2

Max Height: 24 inches

Min. Width: 1

Max Width: 2 feet

Share This Plant Page:
Facebook
Twitter
Pinterest
Email
Print