Butterfly Milkweed in our area

The Butterfly Milkweed is getting pretty showy around here. This is from last Sat. evening at Maxwell Game Preserve east of McPherson KS. This section of the park hadn't been burned for a number of years so the dead stalks are the remains of sandhill plumb thickets that had become too overgrown for the grasses. With all the rain we have had, things should stay green for a long time.

Thanks for looking.

Thanks for the heads up Ken. The butterfly milkweed should be starting here soon then. Is the yellowish plant on the left also butterfly milkweed? I've never seen any that color before.

Scott, butterfly weed, Aslcepias tuberosa, can come in yellow, orange, or scarlet red. In Missouri they vary from orange to scarlet red. Back in the 70s, I recall visiting one old successional field in Southern Illinois that had all three colors in one area. I've never seen that variation in one area since then. Of course, that was the 70s...

Don

Nice shot Ken, I like the environmental presentation of this. I always seem to get in close when presented with a flowering specimen in its prime.

You know Don, back in the 70's people were seeing all kinds of colors everywhere ... groovy man!

Thanks Don for the info on the Butterfly Milkweed variants. I'm going to have to see if I can find time to get to Maxwell and get photos of these different colored ones. Thanks again Ken for the heads up!

Thanks Ken for the nice photo and narrative. And to Don for the additional information.

Wayne, right on man!

Come to think of it, I recall also seeing some butterfly weeds with stripes and polka dots....

Very nice work, Ken. The butterfly weed contrasts nicely with the beautiful green grass, and the purple blooms (sensitive briar?) are a nice touch. Thanks for the update.