Orlando Sentinel  Scarlet milkweed's pretty flowers liven up any
garden  Sherry Boas  Simply Living  October 22, 2012   The
lifecycle of the lowly milkweed plant is a wondrous thing.
Asclepias curassavica, commonly known as scarlet milkweed,
tropical milkweed, blood flower and Mexican milkweed, starts
life attached to a bit of fluff floating through air on a
parachute of feathery whiteness. Winged seeds that land in
suitable spots (which, in the case of this naturalized weed, are
just about anywhere) waste no time developing.  Roots go down.
Sprouts grow up.  Before long, elliptical leaves emerge followed
by 2- to 3-inch wide clusters of reddish-orange-yellow star-
shaped flowers. When the flowers finish blooming, they transform
into soft-sided, green seedpods that harden and turn gray-black
as they mature. Each pod contains hundreds of small round dark
seeds attached to lightweight fluff. Eventually, the pods crack
open, allowing the seeds to drift off to repeat the cycle of
self-propagation.  While scarlet