pink buds burst open

pink buds burst open 

into five pointed rocket 

flowers on milky stems

     Common milkweed, Asclepius syriaca, is such an amazing "weed," I wonder why more people don't grow this beautiful perennial in their gardens. Every part of the plant is useful. Carl Linnaeus named the genus after Asclepius, the Greek god of healing, because of the many folk-medicinal uses for the milkweed plants. 
     The milky sap which gives milkweed its name contains latex, alkaloids and cardenolides, the plant's defenses against caterpillars, though Monarch butterflies feed on the plants despite its chemical defenses. The sap when applied externally is a natural remedy for poison ivy, clotting small wounds, treating ringworm, and removing warts and moles. 
     The shoots that come up in spring taste look and taste like asparagus when boiled. 
     The pinkish-purple pom pom flower heads that appear in early summer look like loose broccoli but taste like the shoots when boiled.
     The nectar inside the flowers can be used as a sweetener and is an important source of nectar for pollinators such as bees, wasps and butterflies. (Milkweed pollination occurs in an unusual manner. Instead of tetrads or individual grains, milkweed pollen is packed into little sacs called pollinia. When a visiting insect slips into one of the five slits in each flower, the sac attaches to the insect's feet or mouth and then gets deposited in another flower.)
     The immature follicles or seed pods that appear in late summer can be boiled and eaten whole. The immature wad of floss inside the pods when boiled is slightly sweet and looks, acts and tastes like cheese.
     The pappus or "silk" inside the mature pods is lightweight and makes an excellent insulator, better than down.
     A tea prepared from the roots is used as a diuretic for kidney stones, a laxative and an expectorant.
     The entire plant is beneficial to nearby plants, repelling some pests, especially wireworms.
     Best of all, in the fall when the pods ripen and spit open, milkweeds provide magical entertainment. Inside the follicle, the flat brown seeds are packed together in what looks like a smooth pine cone with overlapping scales. Each seed is attached to a white filament. As the silky filaments dry, they begin to expand and puff out. When a child (or young-hearted adult) blows on the dry silk, the white parachutes detach and sail away, carrying their small passengers aloft, bound for a new home.