Joe Pye Weed, Eutrochium spp.
The more years I spend gardening and designing gardens, the more questions I ask. Recently, I found myself wondering about Joe Pye weed’s purpose.
Joe Pye weed is well known as a friend to bees, butterflies, and other beneficial pollinators.
Photograph by Mia Kim, from Garden Visit: Emily Thompson Explores Her Dark Side at a Brooklyn Heights Townhouse.
Ok, first question: Is the plant named after a person? Most sources dating back 100 years note different details, but the common thread is that Joe was a Native American who supposedly made tea from the plant and saved an entire village from typhus fever.
Purpureum maculatum (spotted Joe Pye) can grow up to six feet tall; $15.95 at Bluestone Perennials.
Third question: Given “weed” is in its name, does this plant look or act weedy? In North America, where this plant is native, Joe Pye weed is not considered invasive, but when planted outside of its native region, this plant can spread by underground roots and by seed.
Spotted Joe Pye (Eutrochium maculatum) is usually grows to about six feet tall, and has purple speckled stems–hence the common name.
Cheat Sheet
Tall and wide Joe Pye weed forms a backdrop for aster and Helenium ‘Zimbelstern’.
Photograph by Kendra Wilson for Gardenista, from England’s Most Influential Gardener?
A bee enjoys ‘Baby Joe’ Joe-Pye Weed in this Newtown Square, PA, garden.
Keep It Alive
Photograph courtesy of Refugia, from Garden Visit: Refugia’s Quiet Revolution in Philadelphia’s Suburbs.