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Spotted Joe Pye Weed

Eutrochium maculatum (yoo-TRO-kee-um mak-yuh-LAY-tum)

Family: Asteraceae Native Herbaceous (3-15 ft)

Eutrochium maculatum is an herbaceous native perennial wildflower, commonly known as Joe Pye Weed or Queen of the Meadow, that is useful as a tall plant in wet spaces. It displays clusters of purple blossoms through summer into fall. Joe Pye Weed prefers moist to wet soil and does best in sun to partial shade. This plant is resistant to damage by deer. It does best in average, medium to wet soils in full sun, but tolerates some light afternoon shade in hot summer climates. You can cut the plants to the ground in late winter. The root system is fibrous and rhizomatous. This plant often forms small clonal colonies. You can divide the plant in spring or fall and replant to a new site. You can tell the difference between this plant and Eutrochium fistulosum by cutting a stem near the base of the plant. Eutrochium maculatum has solid pith running through the stem and Eutrochium fistulosum is hollow toward the base of the plant, filling out as the pith reaches the top of the stem. Habitat: Marl fens, wet calcareous meadows, cove forests, grassy balds Insects, Diseases, and Other Plant Problems: No serious problems. In the heat, leaves may become scorched if the soil is allowed to dry out.

Source: NC State Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox ↗ Reconciled to full toolbox: matched by slug to slug 'eutrochium-maculatum'. Identity (id/common/scientific name) preserved from the original 87-plant Hunnicutt set; attribute data refreshed from the 57-attribute toolbox scrape.

How it fits the guild

Guild layer 4 - Herbaceous (3-15 ft) Optimal soil pH Alkaline (>8.0)
See companions & conflicts ↓

Companions & Conflicts

Curated pairwise relationships between this plant and others in the library — who feeds whom, who competes, who confuses the pests. Green reads as a good pairing, red as one to avoid.

No curated interactions recorded for this species yet.

Also noted by NC State

Related species the NC State Plant Toolbox flags for this plant — look-alikes to tell apart, and plants that play a similar role in a planting. Ones we carry in the library are linked.

Full plant profile

Growing Conditions
Plant type
Herbaceous Perennial; Native Plant; Wildflower
Life cycle
Perennial
USDA zones
3a, 3b, 4a, 4b, 5a, 5b, 6a, 6b, 7a, 7b, 8a, 8b
Light
Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day) | Partial Shade (Direct sunlight only part of the day, 2-6 hours)
Soil texture
Clay; High Organic Matter; Loam (Silt)
Soil pH
Alkaline (>8.0)
Soil drainage
Moist | Occasionally Wet
Available space
6-feet-12 feet; 12-24 feet
NC region
Mountains
Mature size
Height: 4 ft. 0 in. - 7 ft. 0 in. | Width: 3 ft. 0 in. - 4 ft. 0 in.
Growth rate
Rapid
Maintenance
Low
Canopy layer
4 - Herbaceous (3-15 ft)
Form & Appearance
Habit / form
Erect
Leaf color
Green
Leaf type
Simple
Leaf arrangement
Whorled
Leaf shape
Lanceolate; Ovate
Leaf margin
Serrate
Leaf feel
Prickly
Leaf size
> 6 inches long, 1-3 inches wide
Hairs present
No
Leaf detail
4 or 5 sharply toothed leaves in a whorl that grow to 8" long 2 1/2" wide. The upper leaf surfaces have conspicuous venation.
Flower color
Pink; Purple/Lavender
Flower value
Fragrant; Long Bloom Season; Showy
Flower form
Panicle
Flower size
< 1 inch
Flower detail
Flat-topped cluster of 8-20 purplish to dusky pink disk florets (no ray florets). Blooms from July to October
Bloom time
Fall; Summer
Fruit type
Achene
Fruit detail
Hairy achene. Displays from August to November. Achenes are dispersed by the wind.
Stem color
Purple/Lavender
Stem detail
Deep purple or purple-spotted branched stem with solid pith in the center. The central stem is stout, terete, and often covered with short fine hairs.
Wildlife & Ecology
Native status
Native
Origin
Eastern North America
Wildlife value
Attracts butterflies and honeybees
Attracts
Bees; Butterflies; Pollinators; Songbirds
Play value
Wildlife Food Source
Food & Medicine
Harvest time
Fall
Fruit type
Achene
Landscape Use
Landscape location
Meadow; Naturalized Area
Landscape theme
Butterfly Garden; Cottage Garden; Native Garden; Pollinator Garden; Rain Garden
Design feature
Border
Garden tags
#deer resistant #showy flowers #nectar plant #purple #rain garden #fragrant flowers #pollinator plant #Piedmont Mountains FACW #food source herbage #food source nectar #food source pollen #Coastal FACW #food source fall #wet soils tolerant #butterfly friendly #pink flowers #Audubon #food source hard mast fruit #bee friendly #NC native #NC Native Pollinator Plant #perennial #wildlife friendly #collier preserve tn #cpp #moth friendly
Problems & Resistance
Resistant to
Deer; Rabbits; Wet Soil
Propagation
Division; Seed

Planted at Hunnicutt

Nobody’s planted this one yet.