Monarch Watch is seeking volunteers to collect wild native milkweed seeds for our Bring Back the Monarchs campaign. Thanks to the donations of over 90 seed sources from across the United States, Monarch Watch was able to distribute more than 50,000 native milkweeds this past spring. But we could have distributed more! Due to the lack of seeds from specific ecoregions we were unable to fill numerous orders from the Pacific Northwest, Desert Southwest, the Gulf coast and southern Atlantic coast.
The following is a summary of the seed needs for various regions. If you plan to collect, please see the detailed information for your area found on our website (Milkweed Regions & Seed Needs), as well as collection instructions.
Modified from R. G. Bailey, Ecoregions of the United States, USDA Forest Service, revised 1994.
The Northeast:
• Ecoregions 212 (east of Lake Huron), M212, 221 & M221 – A. incarnata, A. tuberosa, A. exaltata, A. verticillata, A. viridiflora
• A. syriaca is needed for the following states in Ecoregion 221 – MN, MI, WI, KY, TN
The Southeast:
• Ecoregions M222, 231, M231, 232, 234, & 411 – A. tuberosa and A. incarnata
• Ecoregion 231 – A. syriaca in VA and NC only.
• Ecoregion 232– A. humistrata (south of VA only),
• Florida 232 – A. perennis and A. verticillata
• Ecoregion 234 – A. perennis (Lower Mississippi River valley)
The North Central Region:
• Ecoregions 212 (west of Lake Huron), 251, 222 & 332 – A. tuberosa
• Ecoregion 222 – A. syriaca, A. sullivantii, A. viridiflora.
• Ecoregion 251 – A. verticillata, A. viridiflora
• Ecoregion 332 – A. syriaca, A. incarnata, A verticillata
The South Central region:
• Ecoregions 255, 315 & 311 – A. tuberosa, A. oenotheroides, A. viridis and A. asperula
The West (exclusive of the Desert Southwest and West Coast):
• Ecoregions 331, 332, 341, 342 – A. speciosa.
• A. tuberosa is needed only where it naturally occurs. See BONAP’s North American Plant Atlas for Asclepias for distribution.
The Desert Southwest region:
• Ecoregions 313, M313, 321 & 322 – A. angustifolia, A. subulata, and A. asperula
• Ecoregion 321 – A. oenotheroides.
• A. tuberosa is needed only where it naturally occurs. See BONAP’s North American Plant Atlas for Asclepias for distribution.
The West Coast:
• Ecoregions 242, M242, 261, M261, 262, M262, 263 – A. fascicularis and A. speciosa.
• CA – A. erosa, A. californica, A. cordifolia, A. eriocarpa, and A. vestita
