Asclepias purpurascens L.

Stems stout, erect, to 1 m, puberulent; lvs elliptic to ovate-oblong, 10–15 cm, hairy beneath, broadly cuneate to a petiole 8–25 mm; umbels few or one, terminal and subterminal, many-fld, on peduncles to 5 cm; cor normally purple, its lobes 7–10 mm; hoods pale purple, 5–7 mm, surpassing the gynostegium, without lateral teeth but often somewhat widened near the middle; horns short, flat, incurved; fr downy, without processes. Dry soil; s. N.H. to Va., w. to Wis., Io., Kans., and Okla. June, July.

Dry to moist thickets, woods and openings. Thickets and open woods, prairies and fields, spreading to roadsides and railways.

The flower buds are eaten raw or cooked.

Plants can be grown from seed or cuttings.