Asclepias amplexicaulis

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Asclepias amplexicaulis
Asclepias amplexicaulis Arkansas.jpg
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Asterids
Order: Gentianales
Family: Apocynaceae
Genus: Asclepias
Species:
A. amplexicaulis
Binomial name
Asclepias amplexicaulis
Sm.

Asclepias amplexicaulis, the blunt-leaved milkweed, clasping milkweed, or sand milkweed, is a species of flowering plant in the subfamily Asclepiadoideae (Apocynaceae). [1] [2] It is endemic to the United States, where it is mostly found east of the Great Plains. [3] It grows in dry prairies, savannas, open woods, and fallow fields, usually in sandy soil. [2] [4] [5]

Contents

Description

It grows 1–3 ft (0.30–0.91 m) high and produces flowers in the summer. [4]

The leaves of A. amplexicaulis are ovate to ovate-elliptic in shape, opposite, and most commonly found in pairs of 4 to 6. [6] They are approximately 8 to 15 centimeters long and 4 to 8 centimeters wide. [6] A. amplexicaulis' root system can reach between 45 and 60 centimeters in length and is relatively unbranched, with few lateral roots. [7]

This plant was eaten as food historically. However, it contains a poison dangerous to humans and livestock, so caution must be used if ingesting this plant. [8]

Ecology

Phenology

A. amplexicaulis flowers from spring to summer; flowering as early as April has been observed, with peak inflorescence occurring in May. [9]

Fire Ecology

A. amplexicaulis occurs in ecosystems prone to burning, such as longleaf pine flatwoods, and has been found to persist through repeated prescribed burns. [10] [11]

References

  1. ↑ NRCS. "Asclepias amplexicaulis". PLANTS Database. United States Department of Agriculture (USDA).
  2. 1 2 Wilhelm, Gerould; Rericha, Laura (2017). Flora of the Chicago Region: A Floristic and Ecological Synthesis. Indiana Academy of Sciences.
  3. ↑ Kartesz, John T. (2014). "Asclepias amplexicaulis". County-level distribution map from the North American Plant Atlas (NAPA). Biota of North America Program (BONAP). Retrieved 24 January 2017.
  4. 1 2 "Asclepias amplexicaulis". Connecticut Plants. Connecticut Botanical Society. 2015.
  5. ↑ Haddock, Mike (2018). "Blunt-leaf milkweed". Kansas Wildflowers and Grasses. Retrieved July 20, 2018.
  6. 1 2 Radford, Albert Ernest; Ahles, Harry E.; Bell, Clyde Ritchie (1983). Manual of the vascular flora of the Carolinas (9. printing ed.). Chapel Hill, NC: Univ. of North Carolina Press. ISBN   978-0-8078-1087-3.
  7. ↑ Ravenel, H. W. (1881). "Abnormal Habit of Asclepias amplexicaulis" . Bulletin of the Torrey Botanical Club. 8 (8): 87–88. doi:10.2307/2476743. ISSN   0040-9618. JSTOR   2476743.
  8. ↑ "Asclepias amplexicaulis". Illinois Prairie. MuseumLink Illinois, Illinois State Museum Society. 2000.
  9. ↑ Wunderlin, Richard P.; Hansen, Bruce F. (2011). Guide to the vascular plants of Florida (3rd ed.). Gainesville (Fla.): University press of Florida. ISBN   978-0-8130-3543-7.
  10. ↑ Weakley, A.S. (October 20, 2020). Flora of the Southeastern United States. Chapel Hill, North Carolina: University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
  11. ↑ Kush, John S.; Meldahl, Ralph S.; Boyer, William D. 2000. Understory Plant Community Response to Season of Burn in Natural Longleaf Pine Forests. In: Moser, W. Keith; Moser, Cynthia E., eds. Fire and forest ecology: innovative silviculture and vegetation management. Tall Timbers Fire Ecology Conference Proceedings, No. 21. Tallahassee, FL: Tall Timbers Research Station: 32-39
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