Joe-Pye Weed

What a terrible way to treat such a beautiful ornamental perennial by inserting the word weed into its common name. Oh well worse things have occurred as we all know.

A couple of additional common names are Queen of the Meadow and mist-flower which I believe show more respect for poor old Joe.

Joe-pye weed (Eupatorium purpureum) should be used a great deal more than it is as you will find it useful as a back ground planting in your perennial garden or you may want to plant it as a stand alone feature.

Be sure to plant this purple flowering beauty in full sun.

Blossoms appear as flat top clusters in the fall when most perennials are not flowering which allows you to harvest cut flowers directly up to the first killing frost.

The mature height can vary but plan on most specimens reaching a height of four to six feet with a spread of three to four feet.

You can count on Joe being hardy as far north as zone 3.

Just a couple of butterflies that find Joe quite irresistible are Monarchs and The Eastern Tiger Swallowtail.

By now we feel certain that you will want to find space in your garden to plant Joe-pye weed and will be looking forward to all that he has to offer.