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Close-up white flowers of zizotes milkweed (Asclepias oenotheroides).Patrick Alexander from Las Cruces, NM, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons
Monarch Butterfly on goldenrodALAN SCHMIERER from southeast AZ, USA, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons

(Asclepias oenotheroides)
Zizotes Milkweed

Host Plant: Monarch Butterfly (Danaus plexippus)

Nectar Plant: Monarchs, and other butterflies and insects

Flower Color: white, greenish-white to yellow

Growth Habit: herbaceous perennial that grows 1 to 2 feet tall

Range in North America: South-central and southwestern United States

Exposure: Full sun

Hardiness: Zones 7-9

Soil Requirements: mesic soil that is well-drained

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Zizotes Milkweed (Asclepias oenotheroides)

Greenish-white flowers of Zizotes Milkweed (Asclepias oenotheroides).
Green flowers of Zizotes Milkweed — Patrick Alexander from Las Cruces, NM, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons

Zizotes milkweed (Asclepias oenotheroides), a member of the Apocynaceae (Dogbane Family), is a herbaceous perennial that grows from 1 to 2 feet tall and has white, greenish-white to yellow flowers that bloom in the from the spring through fall (roughly March to December, depending on location). The leaves are simple, opposite to subopposite, crenate, ovate in shape and are 1-8 inches in length and 0.5-2.5 inches wide. This plant grows in zones 7-9 and likes open areas with full sun that have dry soil.  More information can be found about this species on this blog post.

Alternative Names

Side-cluster Milkweed, Longhorn Milkweed, Primrose Milkweed, and Lindheimer’s Milkweed

Hosted Species

Monarch Butterfly (Danaus plexippus)

Monarch Butterfly on Green Flower — U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Bumblebees use this plant as a nectar source.

Range of Zizotes Milkweed in the United States and Canada

Range Map of Zizotes Milkweed (Asclepias oenotheroides) in the United States and Canada.

 

Habitat

Desert Shrub Habitat
Desert Shrub Habitat — Patrick Alexander from Las Cruces, NM, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons

Zizotes Milkweed is found on dry mesas, creekbeds, calcareous areas, dunes, roadsides, grasslands, and disturbed areas.

The genus name, Asclepias, is the Greek name for the God of Medicine.

Webpages

Wikipedia

Vascular Plants of the Gila Wilderness (mostly images)

Wildflowers of New Mexico

 

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Native Location

Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas

USDA Plant Hardiness Zone

Zone 7, Zone 8, Zone 9

Exposure Requirements

Full Sun

Plant Habit

Herbaceous

Soil Requirements

Medium

Hosted Species

Danaus gilippus (Queen), Danaus plexippus (Monarch)

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Zizotes Milkweed”

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