Hi Folks, I think all the seed of Asclepias variegata are gone for this year. I'll be mailing them right after Thanksgiving. Good luck with them.
Regards,
Mark (wildflowerman_2000)

Mark, thanks, Happy Thanksgiving! Think of the pollinators helping with the feast.

Mary E.

Hi Folks,
All the seed are packed into their envelopes and will depart tomorrow (Dec 1) in the mail. All should have them by weeks end. Good luck and happy growing!
Regards,
Mark (wildflowerman_2000)

Received my envelope yesterday. Thank you!! :)

My seeds came in! Thank you so much :)

I just got mine, they arrived safe, look good and they are now in the fridge. I just reread the first post and I really appreciate you taking this chore on every year.

I would really love to get them thriving here and pass seeds on.

Mary E

This post was edited by cottonwood468 on Sat, Dec 6, 14 at 15:27

Well the 2014 Asclepias variegata seed distribution is complete. I sent out 26 packets of seed to folks all over the US and four went to international destinations. Folks from Brazil, New Zealand, Germany, and England were the lucky recipients of those overseas request. I hope everyone does well with this year's seed.
I would also like to thank ctnchpr for again supplying these seed. Hopefully next year we will have even more seed but whatever we have will be distributed as in the past. Here's wishing everyone a Merry Christmas and the hopes for a Most Prosperous New Year!
Regards,
Mark (wildflowerman_2000)

Congratulations on your success, Mary! I stratified mine in the refrigerator and just got around to planting them last week. Last year I winter sowed but none germinated, so I'm hoping for better results this year.

I'm curious how difficult it was transplanting the wild plant. Did it have a deep tap root or was the root system similar to swamp mw which is more clumping?

Dana

Dana, the little wild plant was probably only 2 years old so I would think it didn't yet have deep root development. I don't really know as it was the first wild plant I've tried to transplant. Root ball was about 14" by 14", so heavy I could just barely lift it into the jeep. I've written three replies to you and all were too many characters! Guess we have to keep our notes short from now on.

Good luck and please let us know how the germination progresses. .. Mary

I have been asked by a fellow gardener to upload a photo of my Red Ring Milkweed babies. I hope this is clear enough that you can see the emerging seedlings.

These 2014 fall seeds were kept in the fridge (no moisture, just fridge temp), then potted and put outside on back deck under house eave on Jan 27, 2015. This photo was taken this morning, April 8, 2015. Six seedlings showing in this photo and there is a seventh seedling in this pot that is not showing in the photo. We've had a late spring here in central Arkansas, and I expect many of you have also experienced this same situation. Hang in there if you've not yet seen germination. ... ~Mary

Great Photo Mary. I'm hoping it get warm enough for mine to germinate soon.

Mark(wildflowerman_2000)

Pretty little babies, Mary! I have 3 so far. Fingers crossed there will be more.

Dana

Woohoo. As miss Sherry would say, a BIG Congrats, Dana! Thanks for the update. As you can see, all of these seedlings are quite new, too. The pot I placed in the greenhouse still has only the two (my earliest seedlings) but I'm hopful more will germinate in that pot, too. Good luck!

~Mary

Hi milkweed-ers. Found this thread while searching for info on redring milkweed seed and reading with much curiosity. What do you think is the best way for me to find redring milkweed seed this fall?

Thanks!

(I had an old gardenweb account but can't find the login info. I'm not sure how to best use this new setup.)

For one thing, turn on your Houzz email: Up on the upper right, click on "Your Houzz", then click on edit profile, next go to advanced settings and scroll way, way down to where it says "Who can email me" and set it to "allow anyone to email me". I would watch in the fall for the seed to be offered, that's how I got mine last year. Mary

Thank you! I will turn that on.

Curious as to how everyone is doing with their red ring seedlings. I am working to keep mine alive as it has turned extremely hot and dry here. I check and water them each day and so far, they are alive and green. Can only hope they are developing a good root structure for the coming winter.

Mary

Hi Mary

i have only 1 seedling left of the 3 seeds that germinated. All 3 started out weak looking. I still have it in a pot because it is only 3" tall. It looks fairly healthy and dark green, but I'm constantly fighting powdery mildew on the leaves. I think I'm going to tip it out of the pot to see if it's ready for a bigger pot. How tall are your seedlings?

Dana

Hi Dana,

Yes, powdery mildew on these seedlings seems to be a problem as some of my seedlings have it too. I moved the seedlings to an area where they have better air flow and it seems to have helped. I would guess the tallest of my seedlings might be 5-6 inches tall and others still in 3 inch pots are about 3-4 inches tall and all are ready to be planted out, I think. I don't plan to try and overwinter in pots. In my limited experience with a few older 'young' plants, they are slow to grow. I'm hoping it is because they are working on developing a good root structure in place of top growth. I had one older 'young' plant bloom this year but it only produced one flower head on one stalk. Not sure if it is something I'm not doing right or if this is their normal growth pattern. Thank you for taking the time to reply and to update us on your progress. Best of luck with your seedling.

Mary