Blue Mistflower (Eupatorium colestinum)
The fall garden is a magical chorus of busy bees, flying dragonflies, and hungry hornets all taking advantage of the warm breezes knowing that cold weather is on the horizon. A vivid imagination in the forefront of my mind ponders the idea of each insect with a tiny paint brush. What would they paint? Would they paint right over things considered humanmade masterpieces? What colors would they use? Would they create plants in a different more user-friendly light? Silly thoughts can really make you giggle, but having their eyes for one day would be very insightful. One plant I believe they would include within their paintings would be the blue mistflower. This native perennial is currently the focal point of their daily activities and the fall garden. This somewhat unknown plant is native to the United States, is very easy to grow, and provides late season blooms that our garden friends love.
As, a native the blue mistflower is distributed naturally from New Jersey across to eastern Kanas and as far south as Florida and Texas. In their native landscapes you will find them along stream banks, in low woods, wet meadows, wood margins, and occasionally around ditches. You may find them mingled with joe pye weed, ferns, or if lucky blooming right beside a cardinal flower. Wherever you might find them their late season blooms will give them away. Their native habit is one of heat extremes and high humidity. The blue mistflower is well adapted to these climate pressures and flourishes under these conditions. If you live in this region you will be hard pressed to find better plants than natives to fill in those borders.
You might wonder if this native is easy to grow. The answer is yes; as they are used to soils with low fertility and occasional standing water. Once planted they will grow into a thick mat of underground rhizomes. Each rhizome sends up two-foot blooming stalks in early to the middle of September. The leaves are seemingly disease-free, and the entire plant laughs at the heat and humidity of the east coast. While they are easy to grow, they still do not like to dry out and need ample moisture, especially in late August. Even soil moisture is critical for optimum bloom set. After blooming, the clean-up is a breeze as you could run over them with the lawn mower or cut them down with hedge trimmers; usually in late November. The basal clumps will remain all winter long. Occasionally you might have to pull the rhizomes to keep your borders tidy and they are very shallow rooted, so it is an easy task in late winter/early spring.
Our garden friends, like bees, hover flies, butterflies, and predatory wasps love this plant. The flat-topped clusters of blooms make an ideal perch for anyone looking for nectar. The leaves are used as a host for the Cymene moth too. They are vital as a late season nectar source, for Eastern monarch butterflies on their migratory routes. There are many other species that utilize the nectar when blooms are becoming sparse for the year. After the bloom period songbirds will feast on the small seeds produced. It is safe to say these are friendly plants that keep giving to the landscape in beauty and practicality.
Whether you are looking to naturalize some blue mistflowers in a meadow setting, add them to your border for late color, or use them alongside a waterway to reflect the beautiful blue blooms. You simply cannot go wrong with this unique and widely underused native.