Location: Woodland Trail, Four Rounds

Swamp milkweed is commonly found growing in marshes and bogs throughout the state of Maryland. It can be identified by its narrow, lance-shaped leaves and bulbous flower clusters comprised of numerous pinkish purple blossoms. Like all plants in the Asclepias genus, swamp milkweed produces a toxic, white fluid in its cells that helps to deter many animals that would otherwise eat it. The monarch butterfly is one species that has developed an immunity to this toxin, and monarch caterpillars will feed on milkweed almost exclusively until they pupate.

–Mason Cho, from the Glenstone Field Guide