Canada Milk Vetch (Astragalus canadensis)
Canada Milk Vetch is a host plant for the beautiful Eastern Tailed-Blue butterfly, Silver-spotted Skipper, the Clouded Sulphur, and 13 other butterflies and moths in our area (nwf.org) including the threatened Persius Dusky Wing (mnfi.anr.msu.edu). It is also a host plant to the specialist bees Anthidium tenuiflorae, Megachile melanophaea, and Osmina integra (Johnson and Colla, 2023) and is a nectar source for hummingbirds, native bees, and butterflies (illinoiswildflower.info). It is an adaptable plant and can tolerate a number of different environments. Canada Milk Vetch is listed as a species of concern in Michigan (mnfi.anr.msu.edu).
Photo credit: John Blair (2-4)
Canada Milk Vetch is a host plant for the beautiful Eastern Tailed-Blue butterfly, Silver-spotted Skipper, the Clouded Sulphur, and 13 other butterflies and moths in our area (nwf.org) including the threatened Persius Dusky Wing (mnfi.anr.msu.edu). It is also a host plant to the specialist bees Anthidium tenuiflorae, Megachile melanophaea, and Osmina integra (Johnson and Colla, 2023) and is a nectar source for hummingbirds, native bees, and butterflies (illinoiswildflower.info). It is an adaptable plant and can tolerate a number of different environments. Canada Milk Vetch is listed as a species of concern in Michigan (mnfi.anr.msu.edu).
Photo credit: John Blair (2-4)
Canada Milk Vetch is a host plant for the beautiful Eastern Tailed-Blue butterfly, Silver-spotted Skipper, the Clouded Sulphur, and 13 other butterflies and moths in our area (nwf.org) including the threatened Persius Dusky Wing (mnfi.anr.msu.edu). It is also a host plant to the specialist bees Anthidium tenuiflorae, Megachile melanophaea, and Osmina integra (Johnson and Colla, 2023) and is a nectar source for hummingbirds, native bees, and butterflies (illinoiswildflower.info). It is an adaptable plant and can tolerate a number of different environments. Canada Milk Vetch is listed as a species of concern in Michigan (mnfi.anr.msu.edu).
Photo credit: John Blair (2-4)
Life Cycle: Perennial
Sun Exposure: Full, partial
Soil Moisture: Medium-wet to Dry
Height: 3 feet
Plant Spacing: 18-24 inches
Bloom Time: June-August
Bloom Color: Cream
Advantages: Pollinator Favorite, Bird Favorite, and Great landscaping plant
Host Plant: Eastern Tailed-Blue, Silver-spotted Skipper, Silvery Blue, Clouded Sulphur, and 13 other species of butterflies and moths use this as a caterpillar host plant in our area (nwf.org)
Species of Concern: State Status: Special Concern; rare or uncertain; not legally protected (mnfi.anr.msu.edu)
Specialist Bee: Anthidium tenuiflorae, Megachile melanophaea, and Osmina integra (Johnson and Colla, 2023)
Beneficial for Endangered or Threatened Species: Persius dusky wing (Erynnis persius persius) (mnfi.anr.msu.edu)
Resource: Johnson, Lorraine, and Sheila Colla. A Northern Gardener’s Guide to Native Plants and Pollinators: Creating Habitat in the Northeast, Great Lakes, and Upper Midwest. Island Press, 2023
