Milkweed on playground?

[SharonR]

I teach at a preschool and am considering planting milkweed on our playground, so the kids are participate more actively in raising and observing monarchs. However, I have two concerns:

1. How invasive a weed is it? It's spread a bit in my own yard at home, but not choked out anything else. Is that typical? I can't plant it if it is going to take over the whole area, spread beyond the playground, etc.

2. I saw some references to it being toxic. Is it toxic to humans? Or only to some animals? If it is toxic, perhaps a spot outside the regular playground would be doable, but not the playground itself.

Any guidance is appreciated.

Sharon

[Mona Miller]

Depending on where you are located you might want to choose a different kind of milkweed. One that doesn't run underground. For example, swamp milkweed, butterfly weed, or you could plant seeds of the tropical milkweed, which grows really fast in the summer.

http://www.monarchwatch.org/milkweed/guide/index.htm
Here is the Monarch Watch photo guide.

http://www.monarchwatch.org/waystations/
Later you could register your plot as a Waystation.

Need curriculum:
Monarch Teacher Network
http://www.eirc.org/website/Programs-+a ... twork.html

Major concern is handling the milkweed and getting the sap in your eyes. It can cause a chemical burn. Flush with water at least 20 minutes if this happens.
http://www.scienceviews.com/plants/commonmilkweed.html
This website talks about the toxicity.

Common milkweed runs here and there, but it can easily be pulled up when it grows where it is not wanted.

[Paul Cherubini]

Depends of the species of milkweed. If you live in the northern half of the USA, the two common milkweeds (Asclepias syriaca & Asclepias speciosa) pose no serious problems with either it spreading wildly beyond where you plant it or with toxicity to humans.

But I would avoid planting tropical milkweed (Asclepias currassavica) on any school playground because it is extremely toxic to the eyes and mucous membranes of the body. Example: merely handling the leaves and then scratching an itch in your eye or mouth area or open sore can cause 24 hours of blindness and severe burning sensations. I'm not exagerating because I've experienced it myself whereas I've never had bad experiences with Asclepias syriaca & Asclepias speciosa despite extensive handling. And if a child gets any of the actual white currassavica leaf sap into their eyes it can damage the cornea and cause blindness for a week!

[Mona Miller]

http://plants.usda.gov/plantguide/doc/cs_assy.doc
This is a good guide put out by the USDA on the toxins contained in milkweed.