Joe Pye, a native to the Northeastern and Central portions of our continent, is a familiar and welcome sight for many of our history pollinators. A non-branching species, Joe Pye sends up three or more stalks at maturity, each featuring large umbels full of vanilla-scented, mauve flowers that have a similar

appearance to downy feathers. There all around attractiveness at the tops of these stately wild plants is a major attraction for our pollinating friends and our human senses.

Like Valerian, Joe Pye’s umbels dry elegantly as it’s flowers fade. Due to it’s late season blooming, these make an attractive winter feature. They’re also a fine draw for song birds, such as goldfinches which choose not to migrate and stay here on the farm.

Joe Pye naturally occurs in moist landscapes such as wet meadows, around natural springs (such as has been experienced at the farm here), and in low spots along woodland edges. In short, it’s a great plant

to feature in a rain garden, or by a rain barrel overflow spout. It is both very appreciative of wet soils and soils full of organic matter. Not surprisingly, it’s also very comfortable in wet clay.

Care: Besides finding a moist location for your Joe Pye to really encourage it to take well and form a lush cluster of stalks, provide it with at least several hours of direct sunlight daily.

Joe Pye makes for a standout rear feature in a cottage garden or border bed, or massed around a rain barrel. Really, it welcomes your imagination for use in any moist area!

Mixing organic matter into your soil before planting Joe Pye will create ideal conditions for it to thrive.

Gently spread the roots out to encourage them to reach all of the water they can.

After planting your Joe Pye, mulch around it (leave mulch is fantastic) with 1-2 inches of mulch to protect and encourage the roots over the first winter as the plant settles in. From there, supply an inch of organic matter each autumn to keep Pye at it’s maximum happiness, and enjoy as it reaches full mass.