Eutrochium maculatum (syn. Eupatorium m.) 'ATROPURPUREUM' Joe Pye weed
size/type
tall perennial,tall perennial
usual height
1,5-2m
usual width
0,5-1m
leaves
deciduous broadleaf
colour of leaves
flowers
showy
colour of flowers
blooming time
August-September
location
full to partial sun
USDA zone (lowest)
4 (down to -34°C)
winter protection
for zone 5+6
for zone 7
categorized
Joe Pye was an American medicine man travelling from town to town with his medicines. This plant that is known for its curative effect on kidneys and urinary tract was named after him – Joe Pye Weed. I remember the first time I saw - it was in the Netherlands where it was planted in the centre of a roundabout border. I cannot recall what else grew there because it was so bold and attractive that it immediately gained my full attention. Showing a photo of this newly discovered species to my Dutch plant supplier it was clear that I came across a neglect-loving perennial called Joe Pye weed.
Description of the plant:
Atropurpureum is possibly the tallest and also the reddest variety of Joe Pye Weed. It forms dense tufts of 1.5-2m tall, deep wine red stems that are slender but tough, and do not bend after wind or rain. The flowers are composed in 15-20 cm large, corymb-like, almost flat panicles from midsummer until autumn. They open from purple red buds to dusky pink, hairy flowers that attract butterflies. Leaves are deciduous, broadly lanceolate, serrated at margins, mid to olive green and with some purple hues before the plant starts blooming.This perennial, unless cultivated for its medicinal effect, is usually used as a bold feature of larger perennial beds where late flowering is required, and being quite large it makes a great companion to shrubs and trees in parks and public greens.
Joe Pye Weed likes moist sites and when established it takes some level of occasional waterlogging. It thrives in fertile, preferably alkaline soil in full sun or part shade. Its stems are strong enough to take weather caprices so you needn’t look for a sheltered spot for it. It is hardy to about -34°C (USDA zone 4).
Last update 28-12-2014
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GLOSSARY
- STANDARD QUALITY - Plants of this group are 1st class quality with number of branches and overall density adequate to their size and age, considering they were container grown.
- DE LUXE QUALITY - This label guarantees a luxurious quality of manually selected plants that, compared to their height and age, are exceptionally dense and beautiful.
- EXTRA - These plants are usually mature and bigger specimens with exceptional overall appearance.
- STANDARD (as described in the plant form) means a tree with a trunk of 190-210 cm and a crown at the top, unless specified differently. The commercial size for trees is their girth measured in the height of 1m from ground.
- HOBBY - These plants are of the same quality as our standard-quality plants but younger and therefore cheaper.
- SHRUB - a woody plant with branches growing bushy from the ground level.
- HALF-STANDARD or MINI-STANDARD - a small tree with shorter trunk, its size is usually specified.
- FEATHERED - These are trees with branches growing already from the base of the trunk and up along the stem.
- GRASSES and PERENNIALS - Sizes given usually read the diameter of the pot or the clump, as specified.
