Do you love Black-eyed Susans? Well Softhair Coneflower may be the plant for you. In the same genus as Black-eyed Susans, Softhair Coneflower is a taller relative and native northern Florida, southern Georgia, and southern Alabama. This plant is stunning in the landscape. It is perfect for areas that need taller flowers. Ours reach almost 6' tall! Not only is this a great addition for explosions of yellow flowers, but the pollinators love it too.

Check out the video to see more about this plant.

Trying to sow and germinate native milkweed seeds can be very frustrating if not done properly. Many native milkweeds need to experience the conditions of winter and then the warmth of spring in order for them to germinate. Without this cold period, seeds may not germinate or may germinate poorly, so cold stratification is often a crucial step when growing these plants in areas where winter conditions differ from their native habitat. Or, when trying to germinate seeds outside of the current outdoor season.

Milkweed plants and seeds are winter dormant. Without experiencing cold temperatures followed by warm temperatures, the seeds will remain dormant. Most native milkweeds require this cold period. Asclepias perennis is one of the few exceptions.

So how can we have luck germinating milkweed seeds?

The first and easiest option is to collect seeds throughout the summer and then store them in a dark dry location outside. Some…

This post is all about ways to differentiate non-native Tropical Milkweed Asclepias curassavica with 3 of Florida's native milkweeds - Aquatic or White Swamp Milkweed Asclepias perennis, Pink Swamp Milkweed Asclepias incarnata, and Butterflyweed or Butterfly Milkweed Asclepias tuberosa.

In the video, I go over the differences in flowers, mature heights, overall size of different plant parts, leaf characteristics, and differences in the petioles.

I chose 3 FL native milkweeds that are most commonly available at nurseries. There are several other FL native milkweeds that are not mentioned.

Tropical Milkweed is native to Mexico and is typically the most widely available milkweed at Home Depot, Lowes, and other nurseries.

There is currently large debate over whether or not gardeners should be planting Tropical Milkweed in their FL butterfly gardens. I do not discuss this debate in this post. I do recommend that Tropical Milkweed is not used in any FL…

In this post I discuss key differences between the Florida Native Blue Porterweed, Stachytarpheta jamaicensis and the non-native species that are more commonly sold in large nurseries and big box stores.

Hope you enjoy! Leave us a comment or send us a message if you'd like to share your own tips and tricks in identifying this native plant.

More Resources: