Product Overview
Mexican Butterfly Plant (Asclepias curassavica) -- Moisture Loving
Generally considered to be the most eye-catching and least hardy of the milkweed group, Mexican butterfly plants are magnets for bees, hummingbirds, butterflies--and people! 2'-3' tall plants are topped with clusters of bright 2-tone blooms of buttery yellow or gold mixed with orangy red. They start blooming early in the season and bloom all summer long, benefitting from pruning if they start to get leggy.
Mexican butterfly plant is used extensively as both an ornamental garden plant and as a food resource for Monarch butterflies--adults feed on the nectar, and lay eggs on the plant so their caterpillars can graze on the foliage. In areas where plants remain evergreen, there is a theory this could cause Monarchs to alter their migratory patterns; cutting plants to the ground where it is evergreen would encourage Monarchs to continue their traditional migratory patterns. In colder regions where plants are deciduous or used as annuals, cutting back should not be necessary. Winter hardy in Zones 8-11, it is usually evergreen in Zones 11, 10 and 9b and deciduous elsewhere.
Often sold as a pond plant, Mexican butterfly plant is better suited to moist soil around the pond edge, and once established can even tolerate fairly dry conditions as a garden plant. If you are really want to submerge the crown under water, do so in the running water of a streambed.
Hardiness Zone: 9-11
Light Requirements: Full Sun to Part Shade
Height: 2' to 3+' - Spread: 24"
Water Depth: Best in Moist Soil; not generally suited to having crown submerged
Planting Container: We recommend a 10" x 6" fabric pot to grow a regular sized plant, or a 12.5" x 7" or 15" x 6" fabric pot to grow a specimen sized plant. Click on any fabric pot link to read about why fabric pots work better than hard plastic pots!
FERTILIZING: For best health and growth, we recommend fertilizing regularly (unless using the plants in a plant filtration system!). Use Pondtabbs 20 count, 60 count, or 300 count for fast release, or Aquascape 6 count or 12 count capsules for slow release (once a year) fertilizing. Aquascape is preferred for low maintenance, but Pondtabbs are useful in Spring when Aquascape is slow to start in low temperatures. Pondtabbs are also useful for a quick extra nutrient push for extra bloom, and for mid-summer fertilizing of a new plant (we don't recommend using slow release fertilizer in mid-summer or later in cold climates, as plants should run out of fertilizer at the end of the year to encourage dormancy in cold climates).
Plants are shipped bare root or in starter pots, and will require planting upon arrival. For in depth planting and care instructions visit our Planting and Care Instructions for Shallow Water and Bog Plants.
For information on using plants for pond filtration, please read our blog on this topic!
