Asclepias question...nomenclature & trivia

[Sandy]

Mike the Tree Doctor wrote:

> Sandy:
>
> Any idea why the person who erected the genus (L. ?) chose to name it after
> a god of healing? Are / were there medicinal properties ascribed to these
> plants?
>
> Mike the Tree Doctor
> www.treedoctors.com
>

Hi, yes I think all the milkweed plants had some sort of medicinal uses. Here is
a couple of sites I found, on what they were used for.

http://www.botanical.com/botanical/mgmh/a/ascle072.html
http://www.agnr.umd.edu/users/mg/natascl.htm

Sandy.