Joe-Pye Weed blooms in moist lowland thickets
We are tip-toeing this week on the edge of August. Already beginning to bloom are several plants that are so typical of the dog days month, including Joe-Pye Weed. Joe-Pye Weed (Eupatorium purpureum) is a herbaceous perrenial natve to the eastern and northern United States. It grows 5 to 7 feet high in clumps 2-4 feet wide. Joe Pye Weed blooms July – September in low, moist ground, wet meadows, and thickets. It has coarsely toothed, lance-shaped dark green leaves growing in whorls of three to four on short green stalks that clasp the stem with purplish leaf nodes. The stem is smooth and deep purple or purple-spotted. The flowers are tiny, vanilla-scented, and pinkish purple, developing in a large, terminal, flat-topped cluster. Joe-Pye Weed flowers are very attractive to butterflies. Many people regard Joe-Pye weed as just another roadside plant (look for it growing in swales and ditches along highway ramps) but it makes an attractive border plant.
