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Asclepias quadrifolia

Common name:	Fourleaf Milkweed	Family:	Asclepiadaceae
Author:	Jacq.	Botanical references:	200, 235
Synonyms:
Known Hazards:	Although no specific reports have been seen for this species, many, if not all, members of this genus contain toxic resinoids, alkaloids and cardiac glycosides[274]. They are usually avoided by grazing animals[274].
Range:	Eastern N. America - New Hampshire to South Carolina, west to Kansas and Minnesota.
Habitat:	Open deciduous woods and forest margins[222].
Edibility Rating (1-5):	3	Medicinal Rating (1-5):	2

Other Common Names:	From various places around the Web, may not be correct. See below.
	Four-leaf Milkweed [B], Fourleaf Milkweed [P],
Epithets:	From a Dictionary of Botanical Epithets
	quadrifolia = 4 leaved
Systematics:	From a USDA Plants Database
	Order: Gentianales. Milkweed family

Physical Characteristics

Perennial growing to 0.5m. It is hardy to zone 5. It is in flower from July to August, and the seeds ripen from August to October. The scented flowers are hermaphrodite (have both male and female organs) and are pollinated by Bees, insects and Lepidoptera (Moths & Butterflies). It is noted for attracting wildlife. We rate it 3/5 for edibility and 2/5 for medicinal use.

The plant prefers light (sandy) and medium (loamy) soils and requires well-drained soil. The plant prefers acid, neutral and basic (alkaline) soils. It can grow in semi-shade (light woodland) or no shade. It requires dry or moist soil.

Habitats and Possible Locations

Cultivated Beds.

Edible Uses

Flowers Gum Leaves Oil Seed Seedpod Sweetener.

The following reports refer to other members of this genus and are possibly also appropriate for this species[K].

Unopened flower buds - cooked. They taste somewhat like peas. They are used like broccoli[183].
Flowers and young flower buds - cooked. Used as a flavouring and a thickener in soups etc[55, 102].
The flower clusters can be boiled down to make a sugary syrup[2, 85]. The flowers are harvested in the early morning with the dew still on them[95]. When boiled up it makes a brown sugar[95].
Young shoots - cooked. An asparagus substitute[2, 4, 43, 55, 62, 95, 183]. They should be used when less than 20cm tall[159]. A slightly bitter taste[159].
Tips of older shoots are cooked like spinach[85, 183].
Young seed pods, 3 - 4 cm long, cooked[2, 43, 55, 85]. They are very appetizing. Best used when about 2 - 4cm long and before the seed floss forms, on older pods remove any seed floss before cooking them[85, 159]. If picked at the right time, the pods resemble okra[183].
The sprouted seeds can be eaten[183].
An edible oil is obtained from the seed[55, 171].
The latex in the stems is made into a chewing gum[46, 61]. It is found mainly in the leaves and is destroyed by frost[112]. Yields are higher on dry soils[112].

Medicinal Uses

Disclaimer

Diuretic Laxative VD Warts.

A tea made from the roots is diuretic and laxative[222, 257]. It has also been used in the treatment of venereal diseases[257].
The leaves have been rubbed on warts in order to remove them[222]. The latex from the leaves is used, it needs to be applied daily for some time in order to be effective[K].

Other Uses

Fibre Latex Oil Pollution Stuffing Wick.

The following reports refer to other members of this genus and are possibly also appropriate for this species[K].

A good quality fibre is obtained from the bark, used in making twine, cloth, paper etc[95, 112, 169]. It is of poor quality in wet seasons[112]. It is easily harvested in late autumn after the plant has died down by simply pulling the fibres off the dried stems[169].
The seed floss is used to stuff pillows etc or is mixed with other fibres to make cloth[112, 159, 169, 171]. It is a Kapok substitute, used in Life Jackets or as a stuffing material[112]. Very water repellent, it can yield up to 550 kilos per hectare[112]. The floss has also been used to mop up oil spills at sea. Candlewicks can be made from the seed floss[112, 207].
Rubber can be made from latex contained in the leaves and the stems[46, 57, 102, 159]. It is found mainly in the leaves and is destroyed by frost[112]. Yields are higher on dry soils[112].
Pods contain an oil and a wax which are of potential importance.
The seed contains up to 20% of an edible semi-drying oil[74, 112]. It is also used in making liquid soap[74].

Cultivation details

Succeeds in any good soil[187]. Prefers a well-drained light rich or peaty soil[1, 200]. Requires a moist peaty soil and a sunny position[111, 134].
A good bee plant[50, 74]. The flower of many members of this genus can trap insects between its anther cells, the struggles of the insect in escaping ensure the pollination of the plant[207].
The small, pale-lilac flowers are sweetly scented[245].
Many members of this genus seem to be particularly prone to damage by slugs. The young growth in spring is especially vulnerable, but older growth is also attacked and even well-established plants have been destroyed in wet years[K].
Plants resent root disturbance and are best planted into their final positions whilst small[134].

Propagation

Seed - best sown in a greenhouse as soon as it is ripe in the autumn or in late winter[134, 169]. We have also had good results from sowing the seed in the greenhouse in early spring[K], though stored seed might need 2 - 3 weeks cold stratification[134]. Germination usually takes place in 1 - 3 months at 18° c[134]. As soon as the seedlings are large enough to handle, prick them out into individual pots and grow them on in the greenhouse for their first winter. Plant out when they are in active growth in late spring or early summer and give them some protection from slugs until they are growing away strongly.
Division in spring. With great care since the plant resents root disturbance. Pot the divisions up and place them in a lightly shaded position in the greenhouse until they are growing away strongly, then plant them out in the summer, giving them some protection from slugs until they are established..
Basal cuttings in late spring. Use shoots about 10cm long with as much of their white underground stem as possible. Pot them up individually and place them in a lightly shaded position in a greenhouse until they are rooting and growing actively. If the plants grow sufficiently, they can be put into their permanent positions in the summer, otherwise keep them in the greenhouse until the following spring and when they are in active growth plant them out into their permanent positions. Give them some protection from slugs until they are established.

Scent

Flowers: Fresh: The small, pale-lilac flowers are sweetly scented.

Suppliers

For more details of plant suppliers please see our Suppliers Page which lists many more places to look.

Web References

Details of Medicinal Uses, Habitats, etc. in M. Grieve A Modern Herbal (1931) [4]
[B] Data (Latin & Common names, other references) from the BONAP's Synonymized Checklist of the Vascular Flora of the United States, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands.
[P] Data. (uses, distribution, wetland) from the USDA'a Plants database.
[HP] Links, Photos, Suppliers from Hortiplex Plant Database

References for the family Asclepiadaceae.

[CHINA] Data Very detailed botanical/identification info. from the Flora of China.

See the PFAF Links Pages for other sources.

Also try Photos and info from the The Plants Database which has 14,000 images.

References

[K] Ken Fern
Notes from observations, tasting etc at Plants For A Future and on field trips.

[1] F. Chittendon. RHS Dictionary of Plants plus Supplement. 1956 Oxford University Press 1951
Comprehensive listing of species and how to grow them. Somewhat outdated, it has been replaces in 1992 by a new dictionary (see [200]).

[2] Hedrick. U. P. Sturtevant's Edible Plants of the World. Dover Publications 1972 ISBN 0-486-20459-6
Lots of entries, quite a lot of information in most entries and references.

[4] Grieve. A Modern Herbal. Penguin 1984 ISBN 0-14-046-440-9
Not so modern (1930's?) but lots of information, mainly temperate plants.

[43] Fernald. M. L. Gray's Manual of Botany. American Book Co. 1950
A bit dated but good and concise flora of the eastern part of N. America.

[46] Uphof. J. C. Th. Dictionary of Economic Plants. Weinheim 1959
An excellent and very comprehensive guide but it only gives very short descriptions of the uses without any details of how to utilize the plants. Not for the casual reader.

[50] ? Flora Europaea Cambridge University Press 1964
An immense work in 6 volumes (including the index). The standard reference flora for europe, it is very terse though and with very little extra information. Not for the casual reader.

[55] Harris. B. C. Eat the Weeds. Pivot Health 1973
Interesting reading.

[57] Schery. R. W. Plants for Man.
Fairly readable but not very comprehensive. Deals with plants from around the world.

[61] Usher. G. A Dictionary of Plants Used by Man. Constable 1974 ISBN 0094579202
Forget the sexist title, this is one of the best books on the subject. Lists a very extensive range of useful plants from around the world with very brief details of the uses. Not for the casual reader.

[62] Elias. T. and Dykeman. P. A Field Guide to N. American Edible Wild Plants. Van Nostrand Reinhold 1982 ISBN 0442222009
Very readable.

[74] Komarov. V. L. Flora of the USSR. Israel Program for Scientific Translation 1968
An immense (25 or more large volumes) and not yet completed translation of the Russian flora. Full of information on plant uses and habitats but heavy going for casual readers.

[85] Harrington. H. D. Edible Native Plants of the Rocky Mountains. University of New Mexico Press 1967 ISBN 0-8623-0343-9
A superb book. Very readable, it gives the results of the authors experiments with native edible plants.

[95] Saunders. C. F. Edible and Useful Wild Plants of the United States and Canada. Dover Publications 1976 ISBN 0-486-23310-3
Useful wild plants of America. A pocket guide.

[102] Kavasch. B. Native Harvests. Vintage Books 1979 ISBN 0-394-72811-4
Another guide to the wild foods of America.

[111] Sanders. T. W. Popular Hardy Perennials. Collingridge 1926
A fairly wide range of perennial plants that can be grown in Britain and how to grow them.

[112] Whiting. A. G. A Summary of the Literature on Milkweeds (Asclepias spp) and their utilization.
A technical paper covering the many uses of the genus Asclepias.

[134] Rice. G. (Editor) Growing from Seed. Volume 2. Thompson and Morgan. 1988
Very readable magazine with lots of information on propagation. An interesting article on Ensete ventricosum.

[159] McPherson. A. and S. Wild Food Plants of Indiana. Indiana University Press 1977 ISBN 0-253-28925-4
A nice pocket guide to this region of America.

[169] Buchanan. R. A Weavers Garden.
Covers all aspects of growing your own clothes, from fibre plants to dyes.

[171] Hill. A. F. Economic Botany. The Maple Press 1952
Not very comprehensive, but it is quite readable and goes into some a bit of detail about the plants it does cover.

[183] Facciola. S. Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants. Kampong Publications 1990 ISBN 0-9628087-0-9
Excellent. Contains a very wide range of conventional and unconventional food plants (including tropical) and where they can be obtained (mainly N. American nurseries but also research institutes and a lot of other nurseries from around the world.

[187] Phillips. R. & Rix. M. Perennials Volumes 1 and 2. Pan Books 1991 ISBN 0-330-30936-9
Photographs of over 3,000 species and cultivars of ornamental plants together with brief cultivation notes, details of habitat etc.

[200] Huxley. A. The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. MacMillan Press 1992 ISBN 0-333-47494-5
Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.

[207] Coffey. T. The History and Folklore of North American Wild Flowers. Facts on File. 1993 ISBN 0-8160-2624-6
A nice read, lots of information on plant uses.

[222] Foster. S. & Duke. J. A. A Field Guide to Medicinal Plants. Eastern and Central N. America. Houghton Mifflin Co. 1990 ISBN 0395467225
A concise book dealing with almost 500 species. A line drawing of each plant is included plus colour photographs of about 100 species. Very good as a field guide, it only gives brief details about the plants medicinal properties.

[235] Britton. N. L. Brown. A. An Illustrated Flora of the Northern United States and Canada Dover Publications. New York. 1970 ISBN 0-486-22642-5
Reprint of a 1913 Flora, but still a very useful book.

[245] Genders. R. Scented Flora of the World. Robert Hale. London. 1994 ISBN 0-7090-5440-8
An excellent, comprehensive book on scented plants giving a few other plant uses and brief cultivation details. There are no illustrations.

[257] Moerman. D. Native American Ethnobotany Timber Press. Oregon. 1998 ISBN 0-88192-453-9
Very comprehensive but terse guide to the native uses of plants. Excellent bibliography, fully referenced to each plant, giving a pathway to further information. Not for the casual reader.

Readers Comments

The Milkweeds

Sheila Chmuhalek (schmuhal@granite.mb.ca) Sat 27 Sept 1997

I found your web site while I was searching for information on milkweed, and the milkweeds page showed up. I am a professor of textiles at the University of Manitoba in Canada. Congratulations on having such an interesting site. I'll be back.

Has your group thought about plants as dyes? I found the page on fibre but was surprised that dyes weren't mentioned. If anyone's interested, Milkweed is a terrific dye source, as well.

Cross references: Genera: Asclepias. Web-pages: The Milkweeds.

The Milkweeds

David Raymond (draymond@cats.ucsc.edu) Wed May 30 00:17:57 2001

I ran across an article on commercial trials of milkweed as a kapok -fluff-producer in the US. I will try to track it down for you. The US military, or agriculture department, initially looked at milkweed as a source for a petroleum substitute in the event of war. As you note, it is not very productive in that respect. So there is now research on the use of the fluff, which is as warm as down but does not mat down when it gets wet. Keep up the good work. David Raymond

Cross references: Genera: Asclepias. Web-pages: The Milkweeds.

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