Southern Milkweed

Description

Field Description: Perennial herb from a thickened rootstock. Stems erect, slender, purplish at base, smooth except for a line of small hairs between leaf nodes. Leaves 2 - 4 inches long, smooth, opposite, very narrow, slightly widened near tip, 10 - 20 pairs per stem. Flowers 6 - 10, in flat-topped clusters on stalks in the angle between upper leaves and stem; pale green with maroon tint; petals curved sharply downward; corona consists of incurving horns and erect, unlobed hoods that cover the stigma. Fruit an elongated pod, erect, smooth, up to 4 inches long. All parts of the plant with milky sap.