Plant of the Month: Joe Pye Weed...

...not a weed at all.

Joe Pye Weed (Eupatorium) is more likely recognized along roadsides than in gardens.

• Joe Pye Weed is not a weed at all, it is a native American herb/wildflower cultivated as an ornamental in English cottage gardens. It's a perennial that spreads by sending out horizontal underground stems (rhizomes) that can be divided every 2 years.
• It is named after Native American herbalist, Joe-Pye, who according to legend, used it to cure fevers.
• The easily recognizable flowers of Joe Pye Weed range in color from its native color of dusty pink to cultivated colors of white, lavender, wine and dark purple. The extra large flower heads average 5”, and can reach 8” and contains clusters of up to 22 tubular flowers.
• The blooms open in July and continue to look great until hard frost, when they age to bronze that will last all winter. They make lovely cut flowers that can be dried. Each bloom also produces many, many seeds.
  
• Joe Pye's large blooms are loaded with nectar and pollen that attract bees, birds and butterflies including Eastern Tiger Swallowtail and Monarch.
• It grows best in moist areas (along riverbanks), but it will adapt to a dryer location. Likes a sunny location in fertile soil. It has hollow stalks which may need protection from strong winds. It staked early, it is easier to keep stalks upright, or pinch back Joe-Pye in the early summer to keep them more compact.
• Joe Pye Weed is a vigorous grower that will try to grow taller than surrounding plants, with some varieties growing up to 10 feet tall. Choose your location carefully for this fast-growing plant as it may overtake other plants in your garden. Woodbridge Greenhouses has in stock a beautiful dwarf variety called "Little Joe" that grows to just four feet tall.