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Milkweed

Asclepias is a genus of herbaceous, perennial, flowering plants known as milkweeds, named for their latex, a milky substance containing cardiac glycosides termed cardenolides, exuded where cells are damaged. Most species are toxic to humans and many other species, primarily due to the presence of cardenolides. However, as with many such plants, some species feed upon milkweed leaves or the nectar from their flowers. A noteworthy feeder on milkweeds is the monarch butterfly, which uses and requires certain milkweeds as host plants for its larvae.

From Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0

Research Mentions

Europe PMC → · research article

Dead bees trapped in milkweed flowers drive away other pollinators

The milkweed you plant for monarchs depends on pollinators to set seed, and trapped dead honey be...

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Taxonomy

Scientific: Asclepias
Genus: Asclepias
Kingdom: Plantae