Milkweed Seeds for Sale: Which of Our 8 Native Species Should You Plant?

If you've been searching for milkweed seeds for sale, you've probably noticed there isn't just one milkweed. We carry eight native species, and they are not interchangeable. One wants wet feet. One wants dry sand. One belongs in the West and nowhere else. Pick the right one and it settles in for years. Pick the wrong one and you'll be fighting your own yard.

Here is how all eight compare, using the growing details and native ranges from our own catalog, so you can choose with confidence.

The two questions that decide it

1. Is it native where you live? Every species below lists the states where it belongs. Start there. A milkweed native to your state is one that belongs in your part of the country, not just one that can survive there.

2. What is your soil like? Wet, average or dry. That one answer narrows the list fast.

All eight are host plants for monarch caterpillars, which depend on milkweed. So whichever you choose, you're feeding the next generation of monarchs. If that's your main goal, our guide on how to save the monarch butterfly from your own backyard covers the bigger picture.

Milkweed seeds for sale: all 8 native species compared

Butterfly Milkweed (Asclepias tuberosa): best for dry, sunny spots

Butterfly Milkweed is the one with brilliant orange flower clusters, blooming from mid-summer through fall. It grows 1 to 3 feet tall and has a deep taproot that makes it very drought tolerant once established. It establishes slowly, so expect a modest first year. Our catalog lists it as native to 41 states. This is the plant many people call butterfly weed.

Swamp Milkweed (Asclepias incarnata): best for wet soil

Searching for swamp milkweed seeds? This is the wetland specialist. Swamp Milkweed grows 3 to 5 feet tall with fragrant pink to rose-purple flowers from July through September. It prefers consistently moist soil, tolerates seasonal flooding, and handles full sun to partial shade. It's the natural choice for rain gardens and pond edges, and it has the widest range of the eight: 46 states in our catalog.

Common Milkweed (Asclepias syriaca): the classic

Common Milkweed grows 3 to 6 feet tall with sweet-scented pink-purple flower clusters from June to August. It adapts to most soil types, prefers well-draining ground, and is drought tolerant once established. Know this going in: it spreads naturally. Give it room, like a meadow or a big border. Native to 35 states in our catalog.

Whorled Milkweed (Asclepias verticillata): best for small, dry gardens

The most delicate-looking of the bunch, with narrow, needle-like leaves arranged in whorls and small greenish-white flowers from summer through fall. At 1 to 3 feet tall and 1 to 2 feet wide, it fits smaller gardens. It's extremely drought tolerant and thrives in sandy, rocky soils. Native to 39 states in our catalog.

Prairie Milkweed (Asclepias sullivantii): for Midwest prairie gardens

A robust tallgrass prairie native, 3 to 5 feet tall, with large, fragrant pink-purple flower clusters through summer. It grows in clay, loam or sand with moist to average moisture, and spreads gradually by rhizomes. Its range in our catalog is the Midwest and Plains: Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Dakota and Wisconsin.

Green Milkweed (Asclepias viridis): for hot, dry central and southern sites

Green Milkweed stays compact at 1 to 2 feet tall and wide, with unusual green and white flower clusters from late spring through summer. It prefers sandy or rocky soils and is extremely drought tolerant. Its description notes it is also a host plant for Soldier and Queen butterfly caterpillars. Native to 17 central and southeastern states in our catalog, from Texas and Oklahoma east to Florida, Georgia and West Virginia.

Showy Milkweed (Asclepias speciosa): for the West and Plains

Fragrant rose-pink flower clusters from late spring through summer, on plants 2 to 4 feet tall. It's drought tolerant once established and grows in full sun to partial shade. Its 19 native states in our catalog run from the Plains to the West Coast, including Colorado, Kansas, Montana, Oregon, Texas and Washington.

Narrowleaf Milkweed (Asclepias fascicularis): for the far West only

Narrowleaf Milkweed is the specialist of the group. Our catalog lists it as native to just five states: California, Idaho, Nevada, Oregon and Washington. It grows 2 to 4 feet tall with small white to pale pink flowers from late spring through summer, needs full sun, and prefers sandy or rocky soil. It's extremely drought tolerant once established but may take 2 years to reach full size. Its milky sap can irritate skin, so wear gloves.

The cheat sheet: which milkweed should you plant?

• Rain garden or soggy low spot: Swamp Milkweed.
• Hot, dry, sandy bed: Butterfly Milkweed or Whorled Milkweed. In the central and southeastern states on its list, Green Milkweed too.
• Small garden: Whorled Milkweed or Green Milkweed, both on the compact side.
• Big meadow or naturalized area: Common Milkweed, or Prairie Milkweed in the Midwest and Plains.
• West of the Rockies: Showy Milkweed or Narrowleaf Milkweed, depending on your state.
• Want the most color: Butterfly Milkweed for orange, Swamp or Showy Milkweed for pink.

Our honest advice? Plant two. Pairing a species that blooms in late spring or early summer, like Showy or Green Milkweed, with one that keeps going into fall, like Butterfly or Whorled Milkweed, stretches your flowering season, as long as both are native to your state.

When to sow

All eight sit in our Fall Planting collection, and fall is the easiest time to sow them. Most of their descriptions call for cold stratification (a stretch of cold, damp conditions that breaks a seed's dormancy) or fall sowing, and winter provides it for free. Sow after a few hard frosts, onto bare, weed-free soil, and keep it shallow.

You'll find all eight together in our Butterfly Garden collection, each with its full native state list on the product page.

Quick answers

Where can I buy milkweed seeds for monarchs?

All eight of our native milkweeds are host plants for monarch caterpillars, and you'll find them together in our Butterfly Garden collection. Choose one that lists your state as part of its native range.

Which milkweed grows in wet soil?

Swamp Milkweed. It prefers consistently moist soil and tolerates seasonal flooding.

What is the best milkweed for a small garden?

Whorled Milkweed (1 to 3 feet tall, 1 to 2 feet wide) or Green Milkweed (1 to 2 feet tall and wide).

Is butterfly weed the same as Butterfly Milkweed?

Yes. Butterfly weed is a common name for Butterfly Milkweed, Asclepias tuberosa, the orange-flowered milkweed.