Asclepias incarnata L.
Swamp milkweed, rose milkweed, swamp silkweed, white Indian hemp, scarlet milkweed
Swamp milkweed is a North American native plant with a fondess for mucky soils.
Plants: Erect, 3–5′ (1–1.5 m) in height, often occurring in clumps. Stems are usually branched, green or often purple in color. Like other milkweeds, stems and leaves emit a milky latex that contains a toxic brew that helps to protect the plant from predators. Swamp milkweeds produce less of this sap than the other species though.
Leaves: Opposite, lanceolate, 2½–6″ (7–15 cm) long, with smooth edges and pinnate, featherlike veins. They have sharp tips and rounded bases.
Flowers: Flowerheads are rounded umbels composed of many pink to mauve to dark purple (rarely white) flowers. Flowers are five-petaled, with a cinnamon-like fragrance, and appear from June to October.
Fruits: Seed pods are green, up to 4½″ (12 cm) long. They split open when dry, releasing large numbers of seeds, each on a silken parachute.
Habitats: Rich, wet, very muddy soils.
Edibility: Poisonous 
All parts of the plant contain cardiac
glycosides and resinoids, making it moderately poisonous. Vomiting, stupor, weakness and spasms are among the symptoms.
Online References:
The yellow bugs are Aphis nerii (yellow milkweed aphid). If you look closely, you can also make out monarch caterpillars, with their yellow, white, and black stripes. · 9/23/2017 · Summit of Mt. Agamenticus, York, Maine · ≈ 5 × 4½″ (13 × 11 cm) 
9/22/2013 · Squannacook River Wildlife Management Area, off route 119, Townsend, Massachusetts · ≈ 5 × 8″ (12 × 19 cm) 
ID is uncertain 
7/11/2012 · Jeff Smith Trail, Pepperell, Massachusetts · ≈ 6 × 4½″ (15 × 11 cm) ID is uncertain 
7/11/2012 · Jeff Smith Trail, Pepperell, Massachusetts · ≈ 17 × 12″ (44 × 29 cm) ID is uncertain 
6/15/2010 · Garden in the Woods, Framingham, Massachusetts · ≈ 4½ × 6″ (11 × 15 cm) ID is uncertain 
9/23/2017 · Summit of Mt. Agamenticus, York, Maine · ≈ 9 × 7″ (22 × 17 cm) 
6/15/2010 · Garden in the Woods, Framingham, Massachusetts · ≈ 12 × 13″ (29 × 32 cm) ID is uncertain 
7/8/2016 · Dunstable Rural Land Trust, Dunstable, Massachusetts 
Seed pods. The yellow bugs are Aphis nerii (yellow milkweed aphid). · 9/23/2017 · Summit of Mt. Agamenticus, York, Maine · ≈ 9 × 6″ (23 × 15 cm) 
7/11/2012 · Jeff Smith Trail, Pepperell, Massachusetts · ≈ 8 × 9″ (21 × 22 cm) ID is uncertain 
7/2/2016 · Nashua River Rail Trail, Groton, Groton, Massachusetts 
7/2/2016 · Nashua River Rail Trail, Groton, Groton, Massachusetts 
9/22/2013 · Squannacook River Wildlife Management Area, off route 119, Townsend, Massachusetts · ≈ 8 × 6″ (20 × 14 cm) ID is uncertain 
9/27/2013 · Gordon and Kathy’s, Prospect, Maine · ≈ 7 × 9″ (18 × 22 cm) ID is uncertain 
9/22/2013 · Squannacook River Wildlife Management Area, off route 119, Townsend, Massachusetts · ≈ 5 × 8″ (12 × 19 cm) ID is uncertain 
9/27/2013 · Gordon and Kathy’s, Prospect, Maine · ≈ 7 × 11″ (18 × 28 cm) ID is uncertain 
7/8/2016 · Dunstable Rural Land Trust, Dunstable, Massachusetts 
| Kingdom | Plantae | Plants, but not fungi, lichens, or algae (from Stearn's Botanical Latin) |
| Subkingdom | Tracheobionta | Vascular plants—plants with a “circulatory system” for delivering water and nutrients |
| Division | Magnoliophyta | Flowering plants, also known as angiosperms |
| Class | Magnoliopsida | Dicotyledons—plants with two initial seed leaves |
| Subclass | Asteridae | A large class that encompasses asters |
| Order | Gentianales | Gentians, coffee, gardenias, frangipani, many others |
| Family | Asclepiadaceae | Includes some herbs, twining shrubs, lianas, leafless stem succulents, rarely trees |
| Genus | Asclepias | For Asklepios, the Greek god of healing |
| Species | incarnata | Literally, “in the flesh,” in this case meaning flesh-colored, for the flowers |
Asclepias incarnata description by Thomas H. Kent, not updated.
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