What are some tips for identifying common milkweed?

Among the most well-known distinguishing features of common milkweed are its flat, reddish-brown seeds with tufts of silky hair at one end and grow in teardrop-shaped pods. Common milkweed flowers are often pink or purple clusters that commonly droop downward. Common milkweed has broad leaves that sometimes have red veins.

Common milkweed can be found in fields and gardens and near roads. This plant can grow up to six feet tall. There are often butterflies and caterpillars found eating common milkweed; in fact, monarch butterflies only eat milkweed. The flowers of the common milkweed bloom from June to August, and during this time they draw many species of moth, butterfly, and bee.