Native Plants

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Friday - December 05, 2008
From: Mishawaka, IN
Region: Midwest
Topic: Seed and Plant Sources
Title: Source for Matelea for Indiana
Answered by: Nan Hampton
QUESTION:
I have been searching unsuccessfully I might add for a vine species called Matelea. These vines benefit the Monarch butterflies but no butterfly places online carry them. Where would a good place be to get seeds or a vine of this truly remarkable vine. Thanks CarolANSWER:
According to the USDA Plants Database there are three species of Matelea native to Indiana: Matelea gonocarpos (angularfruit milkvine), Matelea decipiens (oldfield milkvine), and Matelea obliqua (climbing milkvine). All three have "Threatened and Endangered" status and that could be one reason you have had difficulty in finding them.On the Mother Earth News website I found Sources for Monarch Butterfly Waystation Plants and on this list I found a source for M. gonocarpos plants at Sunlight Gardens in Tennessee. There are perhaps other nurseries on that list that might carry one or more of the Matelea species native to Indiana.
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