Asclepias humistrata

Asclepias humistrata
Conservation status
Apparently Secure  (NatureServe) [1]
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
Clade:	Tracheophytes
Clade:	Angiosperms
Clade:	Eudicots
Clade:	Asterids
Order:	Gentianales
Family:	Apocynaceae
Genus:	Asclepias
Species:	A. humistrata
Binomial name
Asclepias humistrata Walter

Asclepias humistrata, or the sandhill milkweed, is a species of milkweed plant. It is also known as pinewoods milkweed and pink-veined milkplant. It belongs in the subfamily Asclepiadoideae. It is native to the southeastern United States. It is found in well-drained areas such as sandy woodlands, sandy hills, and Florida scrub. Sandhill milkweed likes dry soil and sunny places.

A. humistrata serves as a host to the queen butterfly and monarch butterfly species. ^[2]

Description

A. humistrata may grow from 0.3 to 0.9 meters (0.98 to 2.95 ft) tall. ^[3] The leaves are oppositely arranged, in 5 to 8 pairs. They are ovate in shape and may be 6 to 10 centimeters (approximately 2 to 4 inches) long and 4.5 to 8.5 centimeters (about 1.77 to 3.35 inches) wide. ^[4] The flowers are pink lavender and white. ^[5] It blooms in spring and summer.

Distribution and habitat

This species in endemic to the southeastern region of the United States. Its range extends from North Carolina south to Florida and westward to Louisiana. ^[6]

A. humistrata is found in environment types such as sand dunes, scrub oak sand ridges, pine-palmetto thickets, and longleaf pine-scrub oak ridges. It has also been observed in disturbed areas, such as alongside roads. ^[7]

References

1. Kartesz, J.T. 1994. A synonymized checklist of the vascular flora of the United States, Canada, and Greenland. 2nd edition. 2 vols. Timber Press, Portland, OR.
2. Zalucki, M. P., L. P. Brower, et al. (2001). "Detrimental effects of latex and cardiac glycosides on survival and growth of first-instar monarch butterfly larvae Danaus plexippus feeding on the sandhill milkweed Asclepias humistrata." ECOLOGICAL ENTOMOLOGY 26(2): 212-224.
3. William Cullina (2000). Wildflowers: A Guide to Growing and Propagating Native Flowers of North America. The New England Wildflower Society. ISBN   0-395-96609-4
4. Radford, Albert E., Harry E. Ahles, and C. Ritchie Bell. Manual of the Vascular Flora of the Carolinas. 1964, 1968. The University of North Carolina Press. 848-852. Print.
5. Rufino Osorieo (2001). A Gardener's Guide to Florida's Native Plants. University Press of Florida. ISBN   0-8130-1852-8
6. ">[]Florida Native Plant Society. Accessed: March 30, 2016
7. Florida State University Robert K. Godfrey Herbarium database. URL: http://herbarium.bio.fsu.edu. Last accessed: November 2015. Collectors: Loran C. Anderson, M. Boothe, Edwin L. Bridges, Richard Carter, Jack P. Davis, Elmer, J.P. Gillespie, Robert K. Godfrey, R.D. Houk, Lisa Keppner, Gary R. Knight, Robert Kral , H. Larry, Robert L. Lazor, Karen MacClendon, Sidney McDaniel, R.A. Norris, Steve L. Orzell, C. Prichard, Grady W. Reinert, Annie Schmidt, E. Stipling, D.B. Ward, S.J. Ward, Rodie White, Mary Margaret Williams, Jean W. Wooten. States and Counties: Florida: Baker, Bay, Calhoun, Clay, Dixie, Escambia, Franklin, Gadsden, Gilchrist, Hamilton, Jackson, Leon, Levy, Liberty, Marion, Nassau, Okaloosa, Pasco, Polk, Santa Rosa, Taylor, Volusia, Wakulla, Washington. Georgia: Grady.