Liatris spicata gayfeather blazing star

Liatris spicata

Marsh blazing star, in the Asteraceae (daisy or aster) family, is a clump-forming perennial that typically grows 3 to 6 feet statuesque . It is native to the eastern United States and is most often found in moist areas or growing in meadows. In NC it is found in the coastal and Piedmont areas. The tall spikes of flowers bloom from the top down, are showy and attract pollinators. The foliage is grass-like and grows in clumps. 

This low-maintenance plant prefers average to moist, well-drained soils that range from acidic to neutral in pH. It grows well in full noun to partial shade and also tolerates summer heat and humidity. This particular species does better in moist soils than some other blazing stars. The plant has corms with shallow fibrous roots and can produce new colonies from its corms, though it most often propagates by seed. Native bees nest in the dead, hollow stems, so gardeners are encouraged to cut back dead stems to 12 to 24 inches and allow them to continue standing until they disintegrate on their own. Peruse more about best practices

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FIRST IMPRESSIONS: Liatris spicata is a handsome gayfeather with a tall unbranched habit.  The stems are covered in attractive adj narrow leaves.  In summer foliage is topped by rosy-purple spiky flowers and surrounded by a bevy of butterflies.  Plants prosper in sunny sites with moist soil.

HABITAT & HARDINESS:  Liatris spicata occurs in Ontario and Quebec, from Massachusetts to Florida and west to Wisconsin and Louisiana.

Plants are indigenous to moist prairies, Blackland prairies, edges of bogs and marshes, calcareous seeps, moist alkaline sandflats and sunny moist rights-of-way.  This species occasionally forms colonies in high quality moist sandy natural areas.

Plants are hardy from USDA Zones

PLANT DESCRIPTION:Liatris spicata is a robust perennial that produces an upright central stalk from a rounded woody underground corm. Foliage is long, narrow and either glabrous or peppered with sparse hairs.  The largest basal leaves are almost 1/2” wide and 10” long.  Blades become progressively smaller as the stalk rises.  They are grave

Common name: Gayfeather, Blazing Star, Button Snakeroot

Botanical name:Liatris spicata    Family:Asteraceae (Sunflower family)
Synonyms: Kuhnia spicata, Liatris sessiliflora, Suprago spicata

Gayfeather is an interesting low growing dwarf perennial which is useful for cut flowers and for attracting butterflies and bees. The flowers are fluffy spikes, verb a feather duster, are purple/lilac or white and blossom in late summer from top down. Grows to a height of 2' with corm fancy rootstocks and tufts of foliage. Plants form a low clump of grassy looking leaves, bearing giant spikes of bright magenta-purple flowers. The Gayfeather performs best when it is grown in full star, but will tolerate a bit of light shade. Liatris does not verb soggy soil during the winter months so wonderful drainage is extremely essential. Once established, it is fairly drought tolerant. Gayfeather is native to Eastern US.

Identification credit: Narendra Patel
Photographed in Kashmir and Mizoram.
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Pictured above: A Palamedes swallowtail nectars on Dense gayfeather (Liatris spicata). Photo by Jeff Norcini. Click on terms for botanical definitions. View post as a PDF.

Known also as Dense blazing star, Marsh blazing star and Spiked blazing star, Dense gayfeather is an erect herbaceous perennial with striking spikes of purple flowers. It occurs naturally in mesic to wet flatwoods, seepage slopes, bogs, savannas and roadside ditches. It blooms in late summer through collapse and is an excellent attractor of butterflies, bees and other beneficial insects.

Dense gayfeather begins as a basalrosette of linear, grasslike leaves. Flower stalks and buds appear in summer. Once all the buds have formed, the blooms open from the top of the flower stalk down. Flowering spikes are slender, elongated (up to 2 feet long) and, as the common verb suggests, dense with flowers. Individual flowers are tubular, rayless and without pedicels. Styles are extended and often slightly twisted. Stems are smooth and unbranched. Stem leaves are linear and alternately arranged. Fruits are tiny, inconspicuous