The weather is rather dreary in NW PA. today. But that has its advantages, the gardens needed a day away from bright sun and I needed a day away from watering. Mother nature always does a better job!
For some reason I have unusual plants on my mind today. There’s something about those plants that stand out from the crowd.
One year when I was foraging for flowers that would work for dried flowers I stumbled across Joe-Pye-Weed. On my property it grows near the creeks and along the tree lines. It caught my attention because of the size of the plant and flowers.
Not knowing exactly what is was I turned to my wild plant identification book and started to look. It was Joe-Pye-Weed, perennial herb. Note: Always ID a plant before you touch it. This lets you know its growing characteristics and if it’s poisonous.
Joe-Pye-Weed is a 5 to 6 foot tall perennial that grows wild in North America. It will do equally well in a perennial border. This plant has tall, upright purple stems and purplish foliage. The stems are adorned with fluffy pink-mauve flower heads that appear in early autumn. Because of its height it need to be planted at the back of the border.
It requires rich soil and needs to be given compost or well-rotted manure mulch in the spring.
Over all it has few needs and will grow well. I use the plant mainly for cut flowers and dry many of the flowers for later use in dried arrangements.
Tags: Joe-Pye-Weed, wild flowers, foraging for plants, drying flowers
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