The Milkweed Vine is a perennial vine from South America that has ivy shaped, deep green leaves and curious, star-shaped flowers. The greenish-white flowers have a lovely vanilla fragrance. It has large, green seed pods that are filled with tufted, black seeds. It is grown as an ornamental for its flowers and its pods but it is also edible and is used as a vegetable in areas where it occurs naturally. Nearly all of the plant above ground is edible but prized is the fruit. It should be picked when about the size of a tennis ball then boiled or roasted for about 40 minutes. The flavor is a cross between a zucchini and a potato. It is highly esteemed in South America. It produces continuously in frost-free areas. As with most milkweeds it will support the growth of larval Monarch caterpillars.

Growing Instructions

1. Soak the seed in water for several hours.
2. Prepare a mixture of half potting soil and half sand, perlite or vermiculite. Water the mixture so that it is moist but not wet.
3. Put the seeds on the soil.
4. Cover the seeds with a thin layer of soil.
5. Water the seeds.
6. Place the pots in an area with warm temperatures in full sun or part shade.
7. When the seedlings are a few inches tall, they can be transplanted.