Nueces Master Gardeners, Inc.Texas AgriLife Extension Service
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Plant of the Week: Ascelapius tuberosa

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This week’s Plant of the Week is Ascelapius tuberosa.

Plant Profile: Ascelapius tuberosa

Common Names: Milkweed, Pleurisy Root, Butterfly bush, orange Sallow-Wort.

Family: Apocynaceae

Category:  Perennial

Height/Spread:  1-3ft H

Growing Habit:  Slow grower; Tall plant with a bushy appearance.

Foliage and Flower Characteristics: Leaves are mostly alternate and between 1 – 2″ in length topped by large, flat clusters of brightly colored flowers. The clusters can be 2 -5″ across and are usually yellow-orange in color. This plant produces copius amounts of nectar and are a great food source for Monarch Butterflies. Unlike the Common Milkweed, this variety produces no milky sap.  However, take care to wear gloves when pruning or removing dead/diseased parts.

This variety is not favored for Monarch larvae as it does not contain enough glycoside that will make the larvae distasteful to predators. It is however, an excellent source of nectar for Monarchs, hummingbirds, Bumblebees, Fritillaries, and honey bees.

Care Requirements

Bloom Time:  May – September

Hardiness Zone: 3a – 9b

Light/Soil/Water Requirements:  Full sun. Prefers well draining sandy soil, but can be planted in well draining clay. Soil should be moist to dry and it can tolerate drought conditions.

It can take 2-3 years for the plant to become fully established and although it does spread by stolons, it is not considered invasive.  If you need to transplant do so in early spring or fall for best chances of survival

Fertilization: Organic, slow release fertilizer is best.

Propagation: Root cutting. The easiest method of propagation is root cuttings. In the fall, cut the taproot into 2-inch sections and plant each section vertically, keeping the area moist.

Seed. Plant produces 4″ greenish-gray pods and can be propagated by seed. Pods can be removed to stop seeding.  Watch plants closely for seedpods in late summer/early fall. Allow seeds to completely mature before collecting seed to establish new plants in another location. The pod produced contains hundreds of seeds with tufts of long, silky hairs (an adaptation for wind dispersal).

Pests:  Aphids.

Plant of the Week: Schizachyrium scoparium

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As I sit here on Labor Day of 2021, I realize that this is the last big holiday of the summer and fall will soon be upon us.

All of the flowers we have nurtured through the spring and into summer will soon be ending their life cycle. And although it remains warm here in South Texas well into early November, there is still an opportunity to have color into the winter months. How?  Using ornamental grasses.

No matter whether your garden style is formal or informal, grasses  can not only add structure (in the absence of shrubs), but can also soften the edges of hardscaping and add another level of dimensional depth and texture to your beds…so I’ve done a bit of research.

Without further ado:

 

Plant Profile: Schizachyrium scoparim

Common Names: Little Bluestem; Beard Grass

Family: Poaceae

This grass is a native prairie species to most all of North America and is found everywhere except for California, Nevada and Oregon. It even grows across the US – Canadian border and down into northern Mexico.

Category: Perennial bunchgrass

Growth Habit: Upright, roundish mound

Height/Spread: 2 – 3Ft H/clumping

Foliage Characteristics: soft blue-ish green or gray-ish green foliage in Summer (May – June).

Bloom Time: In July, Little Bluestem  initiates flowering stalks, which reach four to five feet in height. In fall, it displays a coppery or mostly orange color with tints of red or purple that last all winter. It becomes a more orange-ish-bronze in winter until early spring, when it becomes more tan.

Hardiness Zones: 3 – 10

Soil/Light Requirements: The plant grows best in full sun and on well-drained soils. It is drought tolerant.

Propagation: By division

Insects/Pests: larval host to the following:

cobweb skipper, common wood nymph, crossline skipper, Dakota skipper, dusted skipper, Indian skipper, Leonard’s skipper, Ottoe skipper, and swarthy skipper.