Eupatorium purpureum 'Little Red'

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Eupatorium purpureum 'Little Red'

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Kemper Code: C448

Common Name: Joe Pye weed
Zone: 4 to 8
Plant Type: Herbaceous perennial
Family: Asteraceae
Missouri Native: No
Native Range: None
Height: 3 to 4 feet
Spread: 2 to 3 feet
Bloom Time: July - September Bloom Data
Bloom Color: Pink-purple
Sun: Full sun to part shade
Water: Medium
Maintenance: Low

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Plant Culture and Characteristics

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Uses:		Wildlife:	Flowers:	Leaves:	Fruit:
Hedge	Suitable as annual	Attracts birds	Has showy flowers	Leaves colorful	Has showy fruit
Shade tree	Culinary herb	Attracts	Has fragrant flowers	Leaves fragrant	Fruit edible
Street tree	Vegetable	hummingbirds	Flowers not showy	Good fall color	Other:
Flowering tree	Water garden plant	Attracts	Good cut flower	Evergreen	Winter interest
Gr. cover (<1')	Will naturalize	butterflies	Good dried flower		Thorns or spines

General Culture:

Easily grown in average, medium moisture, well-drained soils in full sun to part shade. Prefers moist, fertile, humusy soils which do not dry out. Cut plants to the ground in late winter. Best propagated by stem cuttings.

Noteworthy Characteristics:

Joe Pye weed (Eupatorium purpureum) is not a weed. It is a large herbaceous perennial that produces coarse but attractive foliage and late summer flowers over a large part of Eastern North America. In Missouri, it typically occurs in low moist ground, wooded slopes, wet meadows, thickets and stream margins throughout the state (Steyermark). This is an erect, clump-forming perennial that typically grows 4-7’ tall. As the cultivar name suggests, ‘Little Red’ is a compact to dwarf Joe Pye weed variety. It typically grows to only 3-4’ tall, which makes it much more suitable for small borders. Tiny, pink-purple flowers in large, terminal, domed, compound inflorescences (to 4-6” across) bloom in mid-summer to early fall. Flowers are attractive to butterflies. Seed heads may persist into winter. Serrated, lance-shaped, dark green leaves (to 10” long) appear in whorls of 3-4 on sturdy green stems with purplish leaf nodes. Species plants are sometimes commonly called purple boneset in reference to the leaf node color.

Problems:

No serious insect or disease problems. Leaves may scorch if soils are allowed to dry out. Powdery mildew and rust may occur.

Uses:

Borders, cottage gardens, meadows, native plant gardens, wild/naturalized areas or water margins.