{"id":22403,"date":"2023-07-13T09:03:06","date_gmt":"2023-07-13T13:03:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/gardening\/?p=22403"},"modified":"2023-07-13T09:05:27","modified_gmt":"2023-07-13T13:05:27","slug":"can-milkweed-pollen-get-on-nearby-raspberries-making-them-inedible","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/gardening\/2023\/07\/13\/can-milkweed-pollen-get-on-nearby-raspberries-making-them-inedible\/","title":{"rendered":"Can milkweed pollen get on nearby raspberries making them inedible?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Question:<\/h3>\n

I have a milkweed question. Some sites I\u2019ve read say all parts of the plant are poisonous. Others say you can eat it. I don\u2019t want to eat it but I have a bunch growing in our raspberry patch. Do I need to worry about milkweed pollen getting on the berries?\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Answer:<\/h3>\n
Jonathan Foster, Special Projects Assistant<\/em><\/div>\n

You are correct that milkweed (Asclepias<\/i>) is toxic–while it was historically used in alternative medicine for a variety of ailments, this practice is no longer advised as the plant contains known toxins to mammals. But your question about pollen on nearby plants presents a great opportunity to delve into a little bit of botany! Milkweed is a member of the plant sub-family Asclepiadoideae, and one interesting feature of the group is that it does not produce\u00a0loose pollen like most plants, instead\u00a0constraining its pollen to tiny internal sacs called pollinia<\/a>\u00a0(the other group of plants known to do this are\u00a0the orchids<\/a>) that are linked to the carpels\u00a0they will eventually pollinate. When pollinators move from flower to flower on milkweed, their legs detach whole structures containing female and male parts (i.e., the pollen) that later fall to the ground to germinate. As a result, you won’t have a cloud of pollen released<\/a>\u00a0onto nearby plants, like your raspberries.<\/p>\n

I suppose it’s technically possible that pollinators might transfer the detached milkweed floral structures themselves to nearby plants, but even if they did, their number would be orders of magnitude fewer than a typical pollen rain. Wash your raspberries well (as you always should before eating) and enjoy the pollinators the milkweed attracts to your garden.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Question: I have a milkweed question. Some sites I\u2019ve read say all parts of the plant are poisonous. Others say you can eat it. I don\u2019t want to eat it but I have a bunch growing in our raspberry patch. Do I need to worry about milkweed pollen getting on the berries?\u00a0 Answer: Jonathan Foster, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":53,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_kad_blocks_custom_css":"","_kad_blocks_head_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_body_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_footer_custom_js":"","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[199,200],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-22403","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-ask","category-fruit"],"yoast_head":"\nCan milkweed pollen get on nearby raspberries making them inedible? - Cooperative Extension: Garden and Yard - University of Maine Cooperative Extension<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/gardening\/2023\/07\/13\/can-milkweed-pollen-get-on-nearby-raspberries-making-them-inedible\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Can milkweed pollen get on nearby raspberries making them inedible? - Cooperative Extension: Garden and Yard - University of Maine Cooperative Extension\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Question: I have a milkweed question. Some sites I\u2019ve read say all parts of the plant are poisonous. Others say you can eat it. I don\u2019t want to eat it but I have a bunch growing in our raspberry patch. Do I need to worry about milkweed pollen getting on the berries?\u00a0 Answer: Jonathan Foster, […]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/gardening\/2023\/07\/13\/can-milkweed-pollen-get-on-nearby-raspberries-making-them-inedible\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Cooperative Extension: Garden and Yard\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2023-07-13T13:03:06+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2023-07-13T13:05:27+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"twood\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"twood\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"1 minute\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/gardening\/2023\/07\/13\/can-milkweed-pollen-get-on-nearby-raspberries-making-them-inedible\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/gardening\/2023\/07\/13\/can-milkweed-pollen-get-on-nearby-raspberries-making-them-inedible\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"twood\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/gardening\/#\/schema\/person\/9f0056a6c4a281b4f517e1313fa2c518\"},\"headline\":\"Can milkweed pollen get on nearby raspberries making them inedible?\",\"datePublished\":\"2023-07-13T13:03:06+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2023-07-13T13:05:27+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/gardening\/2023\/07\/13\/can-milkweed-pollen-get-on-nearby-raspberries-making-them-inedible\/\"},\"wordCount\":289,\"articleSection\":[\"Ask the Expert\",\"Fruit Trees and Small Fruits\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/gardening\/2023\/07\/13\/can-milkweed-pollen-get-on-nearby-raspberries-making-them-inedible\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/gardening\/2023\/07\/13\/can-milkweed-pollen-get-on-nearby-raspberries-making-them-inedible\/\",\"name\":\"Can milkweed pollen get on nearby raspberries making them inedible? - Cooperative Extension: Garden and Yard - University of Maine Cooperative Extension\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/gardening\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2023-07-13T13:03:06+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2023-07-13T13:05:27+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/gardening\/#\/schema\/person\/9f0056a6c4a281b4f517e1313fa2c518\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/gardening\/2023\/07\/13\/can-milkweed-pollen-get-on-nearby-raspberries-making-them-inedible\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/gardening\/2023\/07\/13\/can-milkweed-pollen-get-on-nearby-raspberries-making-them-inedible\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/gardening\/2023\/07\/13\/can-milkweed-pollen-get-on-nearby-raspberries-making-them-inedible\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/gardening\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Can milkweed pollen get on nearby raspberries making them inedible?\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/gardening\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/gardening\/\",\"name\":\"Cooperative Extension: Garden and Yard\",\"description\":\"Information you can use. Research you can trust.\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/gardening\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/gardening\/#\/schema\/person\/9f0056a6c4a281b4f517e1313fa2c518\",\"name\":\"twood\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/fc8c7b5c8d78336ceef76f813278762e12972bcd042b075da831f24d0320bdb3?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/fc8c7b5c8d78336ceef76f813278762e12972bcd042b075da831f24d0320bdb3?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/fc8c7b5c8d78336ceef76f813278762e12972bcd042b075da831f24d0320bdb3?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"twood\"},\"url\":\"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/gardening\/author\/twood\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Can milkweed pollen get on nearby raspberries making them inedible? - Cooperative Extension: Garden and Yard - University of Maine Cooperative Extension","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/gardening\/2023\/07\/13\/can-milkweed-pollen-get-on-nearby-raspberries-making-them-inedible\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Can milkweed pollen get on nearby raspberries making them inedible? - Cooperative Extension: Garden and Yard - University of Maine Cooperative Extension","og_description":"Question: I have a milkweed question. Some sites I\u2019ve read say all parts of the plant are poisonous. Others say you can eat it. I don\u2019t want to eat it but I have a bunch growing in our raspberry patch. Do I need to worry about milkweed pollen getting on the berries?\u00a0 Answer: Jonathan Foster, […]","og_url":"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/gardening\/2023\/07\/13\/can-milkweed-pollen-get-on-nearby-raspberries-making-them-inedible\/","og_site_name":"Cooperative Extension: Garden and Yard","article_published_time":"2023-07-13T13:03:06+00:00","article_modified_time":"2023-07-13T13:05:27+00:00","author":"twood","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"twood","Est. reading time":"1 minute"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/gardening\/2023\/07\/13\/can-milkweed-pollen-get-on-nearby-raspberries-making-them-inedible\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/gardening\/2023\/07\/13\/can-milkweed-pollen-get-on-nearby-raspberries-making-them-inedible\/"},"author":{"name":"twood","@id":"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/gardening\/#\/schema\/person\/9f0056a6c4a281b4f517e1313fa2c518"},"headline":"Can milkweed pollen get on nearby raspberries making them inedible?","datePublished":"2023-07-13T13:03:06+00:00","dateModified":"2023-07-13T13:05:27+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/gardening\/2023\/07\/13\/can-milkweed-pollen-get-on-nearby-raspberries-making-them-inedible\/"},"wordCount":289,"articleSection":["Ask the Expert","Fruit Trees and Small Fruits"],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/gardening\/2023\/07\/13\/can-milkweed-pollen-get-on-nearby-raspberries-making-them-inedible\/","url":"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/gardening\/2023\/07\/13\/can-milkweed-pollen-get-on-nearby-raspberries-making-them-inedible\/","name":"Can milkweed pollen get on nearby raspberries making them inedible? - Cooperative Extension: Garden and Yard - University of Maine Cooperative Extension","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/gardening\/#website"},"datePublished":"2023-07-13T13:03:06+00:00","dateModified":"2023-07-13T13:05:27+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/gardening\/#\/schema\/person\/9f0056a6c4a281b4f517e1313fa2c518"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/gardening\/2023\/07\/13\/can-milkweed-pollen-get-on-nearby-raspberries-making-them-inedible\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/gardening\/2023\/07\/13\/can-milkweed-pollen-get-on-nearby-raspberries-making-them-inedible\/"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/gardening\/2023\/07\/13\/can-milkweed-pollen-get-on-nearby-raspberries-making-them-inedible\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/gardening\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Can milkweed pollen get on nearby raspberries making them inedible?"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/gardening\/#website","url":"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/gardening\/","name":"Cooperative Extension: Garden and Yard","description":"Information you can use. Research you can trust.","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/gardening\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/gardening\/#\/schema\/person\/9f0056a6c4a281b4f517e1313fa2c518","name":"twood","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/fc8c7b5c8d78336ceef76f813278762e12972bcd042b075da831f24d0320bdb3?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/fc8c7b5c8d78336ceef76f813278762e12972bcd042b075da831f24d0320bdb3?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/fc8c7b5c8d78336ceef76f813278762e12972bcd042b075da831f24d0320bdb3?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"twood"},"url":"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/gardening\/author\/twood\/"}]}},"taxonomy_info":{"category":[{"value":199,"label":"Ask the Expert"},{"value":200,"label":"Fruit Trees and Small Fruits"}]},"featured_image_src_large":false,"author_info":{"display_name":"twood","author_link":"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/gardening\/author\/twood\/"},"comment_info":0,"category_info":[{"term_id":199,"name":"Ask the Expert","slug":"ask","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":199,"taxonomy":"category","description":"This is the top level category for all posts submitted to our Ask the Expert gardening questions form.","parent":0,"count":653,"filter":"raw","cat_ID":199,"category_count":653,"category_description":"This is the top level category for all posts submitted to our Ask the Expert gardening questions form.","cat_name":"Ask the Expert","category_nicename":"ask","category_parent":0},{"term_id":200,"name":"Fruit Trees and Small Fruits","slug":"fruit","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":200,"taxonomy":"category","description":"","parent":199,"count":108,"filter":"raw","cat_ID":200,"category_count":108,"category_description":"","cat_name":"Fruit Trees and Small Fruits","category_nicename":"fruit","category_parent":199}],"tag_info":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/gardening\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22403","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/gardening\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/gardening\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/gardening\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/53"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/gardening\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=22403"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/gardening\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22403\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":22405,"href":"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/gardening\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22403\/revisions\/22405"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/gardening\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=22403"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/gardening\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=22403"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/extension.umaine.edu\/gardening\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=22403"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}