![]() ![]() Selections of the species are propagated exclusively by corm division and are therefore generally more uniform than plants from seed. There are both white and purple varieties of Liatris available commercially. It flowers from July through September on spikes 2 to 5 feet tall. Liatris spicata is a more eastern species, found from Long Island to Michigan, south to Florida and Louisiana in marshy places and damp meadows. ![]() This species is not easy to distinguished from L. In August and September it produces purple, rose-purple, or white flowers. There it typically inhabits damp meadows and tall grass prairie. Liatris pycnostachya (prairie blazing star, Kansas gayfeather, or button snakeroot) naturally occurs from Indiana to South Dakota and south to Florida, Louisiana, and Texas. The purple flowers are produced in August, on stems anywhere from 15 inches to 3½ feet tall. Liatris aspera (Rough Blazing Star) is native from southwestern Ontario to Minnesota and south to Florida and Texas, where it inhabits dry, sandy fields, dunes, abandoned roads, and railroad embankments. The three most common ones in cultivation are L. At least 13 species and several hybrids, are grown as garden plants. Three species are listed (or are candidates for listing) on the Federal Endangered Species List. Liatris can be used in borders or informal meadow plantings. state east of the Rocky Mountains and extending into southern Canada and Northern Mexico. The genus Liatris is a taxonomically complex group of about 32 species that occur in almost every U.S. The individual flowers of Liatris blooms have no rays like the typical daisy flower in this group, only fluffy disk flowers that supposedly resemble blazing stars. They can be air-dried (by hanging upside down in a protected spot for about 3 weeks) or by using a desiccant (such as silica-gel or sand) which often preserves blossom color better. For dried flowers, harvest the spikes when one-half to two-thirds of the flowers are open. They also make great cut flowers, both fresh and dried. The flowers are very attractive to butterflies, bees, and other insects. Liatris flowers are attractive to bees and butterflies. In the formal garden it works well individually. It looks particularly nice when planted in large sweeps or drifts in informal settings. It also combines well with prairie grasses and silver foliage plants such as Artemesia and Stachys (lamb’s ear). The purple flowers contrast nicely with yellow-flowered plants such as cosmos, Coreopsis ‘Moonbeam’, goldenrod ( Solidago) or Phlomis fruticosa and blend well with pink flowering plants such as Callirhoe (poppy mallow), Malva, and purple coneflower ( Echinacea). Liatris is a valuable addition to the perennial garden as a vertical contrast to mounded or broad-leaved plants, and is also at home in the meadow, a native plant garden or naturalized areas. The finely textured foliage stays attractive all summer and turns a rich bronze in fall. It generally stays very upright and needs no staking, unless grown in very rich, moist soil. Depending on the species or variety and environmental conditions, the flower spike will be 1 to 5 feet tall. The small flowers open from the top to bottom on the spikes, unlike most plants whose flowers open from the bottom upward as the spike develops. Depending on the species, the clump-forming plant arises from a corm, rhizome or elongated root crown. Another old common name for this plant is colic root, alluding to its medicinal use. Liatris produces tall spikes of purple flowers in late summer.īlazing Star or Gay Feather ( Liatris spp.) is a native American perennial that produces tall spikes of bright purple bottlebrushes above the tufts of green, grass-like leaves in late summer.
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