Dig into Plants: Joe-pye Weed

Joe-pye Weed Other Common Names: Trumpetweed, Queen of the Meadow, Hollow Joe-pye Weed Scientific Name: Eutrochium fistulosum Alternative: "Little Joe" Joe-pye Weed (Eutrochium dubium) Sweet Joe-pye Weed (Eutrochium purpureum) Native to Alabama: Yes
	Flickr Tom Potterfield Click on image to enlarge it

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Basic Plant Information
	I am a vascular plant with no woody stems above ground, so I am herbaceous. I do not keep leaves year-round, so I am deciduous. I die back in winter but regrow in spring for many seasons, so I am perennial. I can grow 4 - 7 feet high and 2 - 4 feet wide.
Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center Sarah Linn Click on image to enlarge it

Ecological Benefits

Other Plants Found in Alabama with Similar Ecological Benefits:

Purple Joepyeweed
(Eutrochium purpureum)

Maintenance Notes
Dormant in winter. Flowers can be cut for an indoor vase but work best if dried. Cut plants to the ground in late winter. When watering, hold hose to base of plant for a count of 5 seconds. Water should reach all roots. Avoid sprinkling water on the leaves. Requires moist to wet soil at all times.
Moist to wet soil at all times: water three times per week.

Habitat Requirements

This plant prefers:
Full Sun (6+ hours of sun per day) Part Sun/ Shade (2-6 hours of sun per day)	Prefers wet to moist soil at all times	Sandy or Moist Soil

Leaf, Flower & Seed Identification

LEAF DESCRIPTION				Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center James L Reveal Click on image to enlarge it
Leaf Characteristics Chart (PDF)

Shape: Lanceolate	Margin: Serrate	Arrangement: Whorled	Form: Simple


Description:
Central stem is hollow and purple; dark green leaves up to 10 inches long and 3 inches across


FLOWER DESCRIPTION			Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center James L. Reveal Click on image to enlarge it
Flower Shape Chart (JPG)

Color: Pink, purple	Shape: Tubular	Bloom Months: Jul - Sep

Description:
Large, domed flower head is 6-14 inches across and composed of 5-7 florets at the end of stems; florets are tiny and vanilla-scented; has only disk florets (tubular, fertile floret that forms disk) and no ray florets (narrow, petal-like, infertile floret that surround the disk); panicle inflorescence (many-branched cluster, with a single stem for each flower)



SEED DESCRIPTION			Minnesota Wildflower Website Peter M. Dziuk Click on image to enlarge it

Type: Fruit - Dry Seed Pod	Description: Small with hair-like bristles	Months in Seed: Summer - Fall

Plant spreads by:
Seeds and Rhizomes/ Tubers/ Roots & Shoots Seeds are wind-dispersed; rhizomes spread and create colonies.

Plant Life Cycle
Plant Life Cycle: All plants start life as a seed. The seed turns into a sprout when it grows roots. The sprout becomes a seedling as grows a stem and leaves above the ground. After the seedling becomes an adult plant it will grow flowers. After the flowers finish blooming, each flower turns into a seed. When the seeds fall down to the ground, the plant life cycle starts again. Each seed can become a plant if it has the food, water and space that it needs to grow.	General Plant Life Cycle - Dreamstime Click on image to enlarge it

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES FOR TEACHERS

Quick Fact Sheet
(Condensed Species Info)

Plant ID Sign:
Ready as-is PDF

Plant ID Sign:
Editable Word Doc

QR Code
(Links to this Webpage)

INFORMATION SOURCES FOR THIS PLANT

Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center's Plant Database		USDA Plants Database
Native Plant Trust		N orth Carolina Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox
Missouri Botanical Garden

Alabama Outdoor Classroom Conservation Education Programs