Milkweed Seed Explosion, Asclepias Family Royalty-Free Stock Photo

I had picked the Asclepias, common name Milkweed, seed pod in order to dry it and keep it over the Winter. I had no idea what was going to happen when I opened the pod, and was absolutely amazed when the seeds blossomed out into a beautiful cloud above the pod. Milkweed leaves are poisonous to most animals, but Monarch catapillars eat them, and they, and the butterflies, they become, are then toxic to potential predators.