Meads Milkweed Asclepias meadii

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Meads MilkweedAsclepias meadii

• Martin Witchger

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Characteristics

• Single stem that grows to about 1-2 ft tall
• 2-6 pairs of leaves
• milky sap
• May-June--flower cluster at top of stem
• Yellow-green
• slender (2-4 in) pods develop after flower
• Seeds mature by October

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Habitat

• historically in eastern tall-grass prairies of
  central US
• Kansas to Missouri and Illinois and north to
  southern Iowa and northwest Indiana
• today they can be found in Kansas, Missouri,
  south-central Iowa, and southern Illinois
• In Missouri dry-mesic prairies and igneous
  glades

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Why Meads Milkweed is endangered

• Habitat loss
• Farming and commercial/residential development
• Habitat fragmentation
• Smaller habitatsmaller number of plants
• Harder to attract sufficient number or specific
  type of pollinators
• Hay mowing
• majority of populations live in prairie hay
  fields that are mowed annually
• may take 15yrs for meads milkweed to mature
• Mowing prevents completion of plants life cycle

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What has been done

• protection and management of habitat
• research and field surveys
• New populations
• Possible reintroduction
• some reintroductions in Indiana, Illinois, and
  Wisconsin
• Not known if they are successful yet

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Works Cited

• http//www.fws.gov/midwest/endangered/plants/meads
  mil.html
• http//mdc.mo.gov/nathis/plantpage/flora/meads/
• http//mdc.mo.gov/nathis/endangered/endanger/milkw
  eed/