There’s an ugly utility pole in one corner of our back yard. I’ve mentioned before that I keep things a little wild in that area to mask as much of the pole as possible. One plant that I’ve grown there in the past is Joe Pye weed. It’s a native prairie perennial that grows very tall with fluffy, ageratum-like lavender flowers.
The only hitch with Joe Pye weed is that it prefers moist soil, so you really have to keep it watered during dry spells. I had a few nice clumps going years ago, but one spring after the snow had melted I noticed all my plants were missing in action. I planted some different tall prairie plants in that space and pretty much forgot about my Joe Pye weed plants until last summer when they returned with a vengeance. In fact my new plants were growing several feet away from the original site, so I’m pretty sure they sprouted from dormant seeds.
Most descriptions for native Joe Pye weed say the plants can grow up to 6 feet tall. My plants were not aware of this, because by late summer they were closing in on 10 feet.
Joe Pye weeds bloom a little later in the growing season. I usually see the first flowers in mid-to-late August in my Zone 5 yard.
I grow a lot of bee and butterfly favorites like butterfly weed, anise hyssop, butterfly bushes, zinnias and liatris, but nothing attracts them like Joe Pye weed. It’s amazing to see. The flowers are just overwhelmed with bumblebees, monarchs and swallowtails. I wish I had some decent photos to share, but when your flowers are 10-feet tall and swaying in even the slightest breeze, it’s a bit of a challenge.
Just like butterfly weed, Joe Pye weed shares no characteristics with weeds at all, so don’t let the name scare you. The plants grow in an organized clump, but you will want to stake them or the stems will snap in a stiff breeze.
If you don’t have room for a 6-foot-tall (or 10 in my case) plant, there are also many smaller cultivars. For example ‘Little Joe’ grows 3 or 4 feet tall. Just like the native plant it prefers moist soil.
