Support the Flora of the Southeastern US
2024 has been a banner year for making the best flora we can imagine. We've created:
- Keys with embedded images of diagnostic features
- Clickable glossary terms with illustrated definitions
- FloraQuest: Carolinas & Georgia mobile app
- Heliophily and Wetland Statuses
- Direct links to Flora of North America
- 17,730 new high quality diagnostic photos and counting
With financial support from people like you, we are aiming even higher in 2025. Together we can accomplish all this: Vote on our 2025 priorities
- Add Global Conservation Ranks (GRanks) vote
- Professional graphic keys (polyclaves) to individual families/genera vote
- 2 new FloraQuest apps: Florida & Mid-South vote
- Image overlays highlighting diagnostic characters with arrows vote
- iNaturalist integration in FloraQuest vote
We've set a goal of recruiting 200 ongoing supporters to donate $15 or more each month in 2025. Please help us reach this goal and make next year's flora even better:
| Family | Scientific Name | Common Name | Habitat | Distribution | Image |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apocynaceae | Asclepias amplexicaulis | Clasping Milkweed, Sand Milkweed | Longleaf pine sandhills, barrens, sandy prairies, other dry woodlands of various types. | NH and NY west to MN, IA, and KS, south to c. peninsular. FL, west to e. TX. |  |
| Apocynaceae | Asclepias arenaria | Sand Milkweed | Sandy upland prairies, other sandy open areas. | SD and se. WY south to TX, NM, and n. Mexico (CHH, DGO). |  |
| Apocynaceae | Asclepias asperula ssp. capricornu | Spider Antelope-horn | Rocky or sandy prairies. | Sc. NE south through KS and OK to sc. TX and NM. |  |
| Apocynaceae | Asclepias cinerea | Ashy Milkweed, "Carolina Milkweed" | Pine savannas. | E. SC south to n. peninsular FL, west to Panhandle FL and se. AL. Previous report of this species for NC and ne. SC was based on a misdetermined specimen of A. michauxii. |  |
| Apocynaceae | Asclepias connivens | Largeflower Milkweed | Wet pine flatwoods, seepage bogs. | Se. SC (McMillan et al. 2002) south to s. FL, west to w. FL Panhandle (Santa Rosa County) and s. AL. |  |
| Apocynaceae | Asclepias curassavica | Scarlet Milkweed, Bloodflower | Ditches, disturbed areas; often cultivated, naturalizing (southwards in our region) and persistent as short-lived strays (northwards). | Native of tropical America, cultivated as an ornamental, naturalized in FL and persistent and naturalizing northwards (see, e.g., Bradley et al. [in prep.]). Kartesz (2020) reports it for e. TN; this and other northern reports far inland and off the Coastal Plain are likely of plants only shortly persistent from cultivation. |  |
| Apocynaceae | Asclepias curtissii | Curtiss’s Milkweed | Florida scrub. | Endemic to FL, from Clay County south to s. peninsular FL. |  |
| Apocynaceae | Asclepias emoryi | Emory's Milkweed | Sandy prairies. | C. TX south to s. TX and adjacent ne. Mexico (COA, DGO, NLE, SLP, TAM). |  |
| Apocynaceae | Asclepias engelmanniana | Engelmann's Milkweed | Prairies, other open habitats, over calcareous substrates. | W. IA, NE, and WY south to sc. TX, NM, AZ, and n. Mexico (COA, DGO, SON). |  |
| Apocynaceae | Asclepias exaltata | Tall Milkweed, Poke Milkweed | Moist forests, slopes, and forest margins. | ME and s. ON west to MN and IA, south to n. GA, n. AL (Schotz 2009). e. and c. TN (Chester, Wofford, & Kral 1997), KY, and IL. |  |
| Apocynaceae | Asclepias feayi | Feay’s Milkweed, Florida Milkweed | Longleaf pine sandhills, scrubby pine flatwoods. | Endemic to FL, from Clay County south to s. peninsular FL (Collier County). |  |
| Apocynaceae | Asclepias hirtella | Green Milkweed, Barrens Milkweed, Prairie Milkweed | Prairies (on loamy or clayey soils), sub-calcareous hardwood flatwoods. | MI, WI, and MN south to w. WV (Mason County), KY, e. TN (Bradley County) (Chester, Wofford, & Kral 1997), nw. GA (Jones & Coile 1988), AR, w. LA, and e. TX. |  |
| Apocynaceae | Asclepias humistrata | Fleshy Milkweed, Sandhill Milkweed, Pinkveined Milkweed | Longleaf pine sandhills and Florida scrub, open sandy areas, coastal strand. | E. NC south to s. FL, west to e. LA. |  |
| Apocynaceae | Asclepias incarnata ssp. incarnata | Western Swamp Milkweed | Swamps, marshes, especially over calcareous substrates, such as limestone or calcareous shale. | ME and s. QC west to MB, south to VA, s. TN (Chester, Wofford, & Kral 1997), AR, TX, and CO; disjunct in TX, NM, and UT. |  |
| Apocynaceae | Asclepias incarnata ssp. pulchra | Eastern Swamp Milkweed | Marshes, bogs, swamps. | NS and ME south to e. NC, w. SC, GA, and e. TN (Chester, Wofford, & Kral 1997), and s. FL. |  |
| Apocynaceae | Asclepias lanceolata | Few-flowered Milkweed, Smooth Orange Milkweed | Swamps, fresh to slightly brackish marshes, wet pine savannas. | NJ south to s. FL, west to e. TX. |  |
| Apocynaceae | Asclepias latifolia | Broadleaf Milkweed, Cornkernel Milkweed | Prairies, calcareous breaks. | NE, CO, UT, and CA south to c. TX, w. TX, NM, AZ, and Mexico. |  |
| Apocynaceae | Asclepias linearis | Slim Milkweed | Dry prairies. | Nc. TX south to s. TX. |  |
| Apocynaceae | Asclepias longifolia | Longleaf Milkweed, Savanna Milkweed | Wet pine savannas. | DE (formerly) south to s. FL, west to e. LA. |  |
| Apocynaceae | Asclepias meadii | Mead's Milkweed | Upland prairies over limestone, igneous glades. | Nw. IN, n. IL, sw. WI south to s. IL, s. MO, and e. KS. |  |
| Apocynaceae | Asclepias michauxii | Michaux's Milkweed | Pine savannas. | Se. NC south to peninsular FL, west to e. LA. The 1961 collection documenting this species for NC was variously misdetermined until recently as A. cinerea or A. longifolia. |  |
| Apocynaceae | Asclepias obovata | Pineland Milkweed | Longleaf pine sandhills, other woodlands and savannas. | E. SC south to Panhandle FL, west to AR, e. OK, and e. TX. |  |
| Apocynaceae | Asclepias oenotheroides | Sidecluster Milkweed, Hierba de Zizotes, Matacoyote | Sandy or rocky calcareous prairies, other dry habitats. | OK, s. CO, and s. AZ south to Mexico and Central America. |  |
| Apocynaceae | Asclepias pedicellata | Stalked Milkweed, Savanna Milkweed | Dry longleaf pine savannas, wet pine flatwoods. | Se. NC south to s. FL and Panhandle FL. |  |
| Apocynaceae | Asclepias perennis | Smoothseed Milkweed, Swamp-forest Milkweed, Aquatic Milkweed | Cypress-gum swamps, bottomland hardwood forests, marshes. | Se. NC south to c. peninsular FL, west to e. TX, north in the interior to s. IN and s. IL. |  |
| Apocynaceae | Asclepias prostrata | Prostrate Milkweed | "Sparse early-successional vegetation on loamy fine sands and fine sandy loams" (Carr 2016). | S. TX (Tamaulipan Plain: Starr and Zapata counties) and ne. Mexico (TAM). | |
| Apocynaceae | Asclepias pumila | Low Milkweed | Calcareous prairies, other grasslands. | ND and MT south to c. OK, Panhandle TX, and NM. |  |
| Apocynaceae | Asclepias purpurascens | Purple Milkweed | Openings in moist bottomlands and swamp forests, prairies and meadows (rich, wet to mesic), woodlands, perhaps mostly on soils derived from mafic or calcareous rocks. | NH and s. ON west to WI, IA, and KS, south to NC, nw. TN (Chester, Wofford, & Kral 1997), KY, AR, and OK. |  |
| Apocynaceae | Asclepias quadrifolia | Fourleaf Milkweed, Whorled Milkweed | Moist to dryish forests and forest margins, most common on mafic and calcareous substrates. | NH and NY west to IN, south to NC, n. GA, n. AL, and c. TN; also from w. IL west to MO, south to AR and OK. |  |
| Apocynaceae | Asclepias rubra | Purple Savanna Milkweed, "Red Milkweed" | Pocosin ecotones, wet pine savannas, seepage bogs in longleaf pine sandhills, seepage swamps. | Se. NY (Long Island), se. PA, and NJ south to wc. GA and w. Panhandle FL, west to e. TX. |  |
| Apocynaceae | Asclepias speciosa | Showy Milkweed | Floodplains and margins of streams and lakes, moist prairies, weedy in disturbed areas. | MN west to BC, south to c. OK, n. TX, NM, AZ, and CA. |  |
| Apocynaceae | Asclepias stenophylla | Narrowleaf Milkweed | Dry calcareous prairies, glades. | W. IL, se. MN, s. SD, se. MT, south to n. AR, wc. LA, e. TX, OK, and n. NM. |  |
| Apocynaceae | Asclepias subverticillata | Horsetail Milkweed, Poison Milkweed | Prairies, disturbed areas. | Native from w. KS, s. WY, s. ID south to w. TX, NM, AZ, and s. Mexico; reported scattered occurrences eastwards of that area are either definitely introductions as waifs (MO), possibly so (nc. TX, se. TX, s. TX), or possibly misidentifications. |  |
| Apocynaceae | Asclepias sullivantii | Prairie Milkweed, Sullivant's Milkweed | Calcareous prairies, riverbanks, bottomlands. | ON, MI, Wim MN, and e. ND south to sc. OH, s. IN, s. IL, MO, and OK. |  |
| Apocynaceae | Asclepias syriaca | Common Milkweed | Prairies, floodplains, pastures, roadsides, disturbed areas. | NB and ME west to s. MB and ND, south to SC, GA, c. TN (Chester, Wofford, & Kral 1997), AR, OK, and KS, the southern range expansion recent. This species is apparently expanding its range southward; see Wyatt et al. (1993) and Wyatt (1996) for discussion. |  |
| Apocynaceae | Asclepias texana | Texas Milkweed | Rocky hillsides. | C. TX; w. TX to n. Mexico (CHH, COA, NLE, SLP). |  |
| Apocynaceae | Asclepias tomentosa | Sandhill Milkweed, Velvetleaf Milkweed | Longleaf pine sandhills, oak scrubs, drier pine flatwoods, coastal dunes. | Sc. NC south to s. FL, west to se. AL and Panhandle FL; disjunct in e. TX. The curious distribution is mapped and discussed by Sorrie (2016). |  |
| Apocynaceae | Asclepias tuberosa var. 1 | Western Butterflyweed | Prairies. | SD, CO, s. UT south to e. TX, s. TX, s. NM, s. AZ, and Mexico (TAM, NLE, COA, CHH, and SON). | |
| Apocynaceae | Asclepias tuberosa var. 2 | Scrub Butterflyweed | Florida scrub. | Endemic in c. FL peninsula. | |
| Apocynaceae | Asclepias tuberosa var. cordata | Midwestern Butterflyweed | Dry forests, roadbanks. | QC, ON, MN, SD, CO, UT, and CA south to PA, WV, KY, TN, and AL. |  |
| Apocynaceae | Asclepias tuberosa var. rolfsii | Sandhill Butterflyweed | Longleaf pine sandhills, other dry, sandy habitats. | Se. VA south to s. FL, west to s. MS. |  |
| Apocynaceae | Asclepias tuberosa var. tuberosa | Eastern Butterflyweed | Woodland margins, roadsides, pastures. | S. NH west to OH, south to Panhandle FL and e. TX. |  |
| Apocynaceae | Asclepias variegata | White Milkweed, Redring Milkweed | Upland forests and woodlands. | CT west to OH, s. IN, s. IL, se. MO, and se. OK, south to Panhandle FL, LA, and e. TX. |  |
| Apocynaceae | Asclepias verticillata | Whorled Milkweed | Barrens, thin soils of rock outcrops (especially mafic or calcareous rocks), prairies, open woodlands, longleaf pine sandhills, pine flatwoods, road and powerline rights-of-way. | E. MA west to ND and MB, south to s. FL, TX, NM, and AZ. |  |
| Apocynaceae | Asclepias viridiflora | Glade Milkweed, Green Milkweed | Open woodlands, woodland edges, barrens, glades, especially over mafic or calcareous rocks, and also in disturbed areas. | CT west to s. ON, MB, ND, and MT, south to NC, SC, GA, Panhandle FL, AL, LA, TX, n. Mexico (CHH, COA, DGO, NLE), NM, and AZ. |  |
| Apocynaceae | Asclepias viridis | Green Antelope-horn, Spider Milkweed | Prairies, dry woodlands, calcareous hammocks, pine rocklands (s. FL). | S. SC south to s. FL, west to TX; and from OH, w. WV, and KY west to NE, south to se. TN, c. TN (Chester, Wofford, & Kral 1997), nw. GA, c. AL, c. MS, AR, TX, and OK. |  |
| Apocynaceae | Asclepias viridula | Bog Milkweed, Little Green Milkweed, Southern Milkweed | Wet longleaf pine savannas and flatwoods, seepage slopes, pitcherplant bogs. | Ne. FL; se. AL (Houston County) south to Panhandle FL; no records exist for GA. |  |