# Fewflower Milkweed (Asclepias lanceolata)

> A tall, sparse, brilliant orange-red milkweed of coastal marsh and wet savanna. Imagine butterfly weed stretched to five feet, standing in a brackish ditch with only a handful of flowers per head.

Source: https://milkweedusa.com/species/fewflower-milkweed/  
Licence: CC BY 4.0 (Milkweed USA)

## Summary

A tall, sparse, brilliant orange-red milkweed of coastal marsh and wet savanna. Imagine butterfly weed stretched to five feet, standing in a brackish ditch with only a handful of flowers per head.

## Key facts

| Field | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Scientific name | Asclepias lanceolata Walter |
| Genus | Asclepias |
| Family | Apocynaceae |
| Common names | Fewflower Milkweed, Cedar Hill Milkweed, Purple Silkweed |
| Status | Native |
| Height | 2 ft–5 ft |
| Spread | 10 in–1.5 ft |
| Flower color | orange, red |
| Bloom period | May to August |
| Light | Full sun |
| Soil moisture | Wet |
| USDA zones | 6-10 |
| Leaf arrangement | opposite |
| Leaf shape | narrow |
| Sap | Milky latex |
| Root system | Fibrous, clump-forming and easy to move |
| Seed stratification | 30 days cold-moist |
| Monarch value (0-5) | 3 |
| Garden value (0-5) | 4 |
| Nectar value (0-5) | 4 |
| US states recorded | Alabama, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, North Carolina, New Jersey, South Carolina, Texas, Virginia |

## Identification

- Tall unbranched stem with very few, very narrow leaf pairs.
- Flowers vivid orange-red, in small clusters of a dozen or fewer.
- Coastal wetlands, brackish marsh edges and wet pine savanna.

## Ecology

A striking nectar plant in coastal wetlands and a modest monarch host along the Atlantic and Gulf coasts.

## Growing

Needs constantly wet, acidic soil and full sun, so treat it as a bog garden plant.

## Cautions

Standard milkweed cautions.

## References

- Plants of the World Online: https://powo.science.kew.org/taxon/urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:30049929-2
- GBIF: https://www.gbif.org/species/3170251
- iNaturalist: https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/158744
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asclepias_lanceolata
- BONAP county map: https://bonap.net/MapGallery/County/Asclepias%20lanceolata.png
- NatureServe: https://explorer.natureserve.org/Search?searchTerm=Asclepias%20lanceolata

## Photographs

- Asclepias lanceolata plant (Happypixie, CC BY-SA 3.0): https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Asclepias_lanceolata_plant.jpg
- Asclepias lanceolata (9099845297) (Everglades NPS from Homestead, Florida, United States, Public domain): https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Asclepias_lanceolata_(9099845297).jpg
- Asclepias lanceolata (9099844995) (Everglades NPS from Homestead, Florida, United States, Public domain): https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Asclepias_lanceolata_(9099844995).jpg
- Asclepias lanceolata (WendyAvilesR, CC BY-SA 4.0): https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Asclepias_lanceolata.jpg
- Asclepias lanceolata 386072019 (Alex Abair, CC BY 4.0): https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Asclepias_lanceolata_386072019.jpg
- Asclepias lanceolata 386071992 (Alex Abair, CC BY 4.0): https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Asclepias_lanceolata_386071992.jpg
- Asclepias lanceolata 386072038 (Alex Abair, CC BY 4.0): https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Asclepias_lanceolata_386072038.jpg
- Asclepias lanceolata 386072022 (Alex Abair, CC BY 4.0): https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Asclepias_lanceolata_386072022.jpg

## How to cite

Milkweed USA. (2026). Fewflower Milkweed (Asclepias lanceolata). https://milkweedusa.com/species/fewflower-milkweed/