I always cover milkweed seeds with a little dirt when direct planting: I have recently discovered the Gomphocarpus physocarpus plant on Ebay and purchased some seeds. Hi Craig, click on the resource links at the bottom of the page. only bought it because strangest looking balls in your face . They grew to about two inches high, then lost their leaves several months ago. If you have noticed other pollinators on the goose plant, please leave a comment below. Milkweed responds well to fertilizers, but is not a necessity. I have over 20 of them growing in my yard. Hi Kae, this often has to do with water…too little or not enough. It is poisonous to stock and humans and the sap is a skin irritant, I’ve been hand-pulling plants this morning and now my hands tingle and eyes burn (hence my research!). I have a six foot Oscar that I grew from seed started indoors, zone 7 (WV). Miami , fl 33175 (305) 271-7190. Hi Toni, I wrote an article about this issue a year ago, and no new info has come to light since I wrote it. They are in moist potting soil in half a milk carton, under 220W of fluorescent lights and wrapped in saran wrap so they don’t dry out. Here are some facts about this amazing plant: Fast growing annual Milkweed, hardy in zones 8-10 However, it grows throughout the United States, so be sure to specify Florida native ecotype from a Florida grower. Three Asclepias species have been introduced to the United States: tropical milkweed (A. curassavica), African milkweed (A. fruticosa), and swan or balloon plant (A. physocarpa). I didn’t even bother to cut it back …. One more time: starting seeds indoors early will give you a huge jump on the season and is a must for northern gardeners. I was recently smashing and rinsing aphids from my plant and when finished, about 15 minutes later, had a very unpleasant burning/itching sensation on my arms? Virus carried by infected Monarchs. Most people are used to seeing the bright orange flowers of the, non-native, scarlet milkweed ( Asclepias curassavica) and don’t realize that Florida is home to twenty one native milkweeds. Meanwhile wasps are killing my cats so I brought my 2 new plants inside and picked 12 cats off outside and brought them in!! By the way – they call G. physocarpus Bishop’s Balls in the UK and you can buy seeds and plants there. The mama Monarchs seek them out. I am now the proud owner of 3 of these plants. I’ve started using toilet paper instead of paper towels to germinate seeds on, because I have had tomatoes seeds send roots into the paper towel and be impossible to get them loose w/o breaking most of them off (I threw those seeds away and started another packet.) Right now in Lake Forest, California Green Thumb International has these plants in one gallon sizes with balls and all! I was given a bouquet which included it a few weeks ago. and I live near you. Only thing is, I don’t know how to properly cut them back. This particular specie has showy flowers, is easy to grow, and has spread to natural areas and open pastures in Florida. If you want the G. physocarpus seeds to germinate faster, soak them in water for 24 hours before planting. Maybe the trees are not dead and we just need to trim them all the way back to the trunk? I’ve had honey bee’s pollinate the blooms. When you notice a seam starting to open on the pod the seeds are ready to remove. I am saving some seeds from the milkweed. Ok to use tap water? There’s no reason you can’t have both, in my opinion…good luck with all your milkweed! Then…it came to me…”great balls of fire…that’s the hairy ball plant!”. I pulled out all our plants today but did make a table centerpiece with a few of the stalks to get more seeds in the next couple weeks. I’ve grown tropical milkweed for 6 years now, and have nothing but good things to say about how it has attracted and supported monarchs in our home and garden…there are also simple solutions to the potential problems associated with this species: Is Tropical Milkweed Killing Monarch Butterflies? (I have been covering my plant during the “freezes” so that it will be ready for spring migration!). I am in Florida, so they have been outside most of the time, aside from a couple when I brought all my plants in in to let the potted tropical mw grow back and to keep butterflies from laying eggs on and eating my seedlings. Did you have any success with that? Thanks a lot. It is also called balloon plant and when picked green the inflated seed pods dry well. Home. If so what would you recommend in terms of that since it’s woody would you still trim it back to about 6-8″ tall? Even though I flooded my eye with water for multiple times, several minutes each time, I still had to go to a Emergency Clinic, which put me thru another serious eye rinse process… they gave me some kind of pain killing eye drops when I first got there, which eased the burning & tricked me into believing that I was thru the worst of it, but, within a few hours, the horrific burning came back, & my eyes had become so sensitive to light that I sat in a dark room with dark sunglasses on & even the dimmest of lights felt like a dagger in my eye! Do you think I should keep the seed pods and hope that they will finish developing, or are they doomed since they are no longer on the plant (or stem cutting). There are hundreds of milkweed varieties, but only a few are sustainable in Florida. Hi Mary, I’ve overwintered a couple inside with pods and the seeds did mature…. The packet said 25 seeds but it looked like more than that. I’ll have to plant them tomorrow. sun: Full to Part Sun. I got some milkweed ssp in my my eye and it almost blinded me. This is my second year of dedicating my flower beds to the butterflies and I’ve had much success, including seeing several monarch catterpillars. but stand the tap water for an hour as this release’s any chemicals in the water. Now I’m reading how sensitive to cooler climates it is. I live Northern California (San Fran Bay Area) Zone 9. Or?? Of these, tropical milkweed (also called blood flower or scarlet milkweed) is the most widely available from commercial sources. Thanks and happy New years! We have been watering plenty—so I don’t think we killed them by under watering. Glad to hear you are ok! All I really need is a couple of plants. I collected seeds using a baggie to place balls in before they opened . I found a several dozen eggs on my Gomphocarpus physocarpus this year. If the pods are purplish, you may be in luck and get some mature seeds, but if the pods are green the seeds will likely be white and not viable. Fast & … They are all dry now, but the branches are dry too, as if they are dying. Shop great deals on Milkweed Full Sun Perennial Flower & Plant Seeds. Thank you can cut the stems and let them finish developing indoors…good luck! I didn’t see any Monarchs at the flowers, but they did leave their eggs. Don’t remove them before, or they may not be viable. Otherwise, you could overwinter indoors or start seeds indoors next spring. I just bought this milkweed started from a cutting based on the description that it is one of the “most popular” with Monarchs. I, too, am very aware of it, & I will cut off a branch(es) from my Milkweed, if I don’t think it looks healthy, any time of the year! Maybe it was was an allergic reaction? A friend of mine just cleaned out his garden and told me that he was going to give me some milkweed seeds. I was able to germinate several seeds though. Hi Dana, I was not able to root physocarpus in water, but I am still going to try planting cuttings in soil (with rooting hormone) at the end of the season. I bought several plants of this species last year, 2013, and enjoyed growing it. Yesterday I was given one of the balls with seeds. I have balloon plants reseeding all over a large lot in Oakland, CA and am giving away the seedlings. If some of the pods are “close” to developing right before your first frost, take a long cutting and put it in a vase. I was lucky, though, as my eye has healed up without having any long term complications that I could of had! My luck with the Davis, Virginia Silk & Thin Leaf Milkweed, has not been as good, but I haven’t given up, yet. If they did, it didn’t give you much of a head start. z: 3 to 9, Found in hill prairies to open woodlands, from Canada to Florida, east of the Rocky Mountians. Balloon Milkweed. Several more should be opening any day now. Any help is appreciated. I want to try raising a variety of milkweed but would be concerned about not cutting back before the spring migration. I am in Naples, FL and have grown Giant Milkweed for 3 years and it survives and blooms all year. I have got a balloon milkweed, but I don’t know what the benefits of this plant are and what it’s used for? They lay eggs throughout the season. We do have a lot of those red and black bugs on the trees—maybe they killed the trees? The seedpods have opened, & now that I’ve ID’d it, I’ll be saving the seed to grow along with my other milkweeds next year. I’ll have to bring the plant inside when the weather turns cold, but I’m hoping that the seedpods will continue developing under lights. Hi Paul, I’m not sure about the growth cycle in warm regions on the US. Try a facebook group like: PS…milkweed bugs eat the seeds, but don’t typically kill plants. 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