Tried and True Native Plant Selections for the Mid-Atlantic
Liatris spicata (Gayfeather, (Dense) Blazing Star) blooms in June. Photo by Elaine L. Mills, 2015-06-25, Glencarlyn Library Community Garden
Masse of Liatris spicata (Gayfeather, (Dense) Blazing Star) blooms in June. Photo by Elaine L. Mills, 2015-06-29, Pollinator Garden opposite Gulf Branch Nature Center.
Liatris spicata (Gayfeather, (Dense) Blazing Star) bloom in June. Photo by Elaine L. Mills, 2015-06-29, Meadowlark Botanical Gardens.
Apis mellifera (European honey bee) feeding on Liatris spicata flowers. Photo © Mary Free, 2014-07-17, Sunny Garden, Bon Air Park.
Skipper butterfly feeding on determinate spike of Liatris spicata (blazingstar) in July. Photo © Mary Free, 2014-07-17, Sunny Garden, Bon Air Park.
Liatris spicata (Gayfeather, (Dense) Blazing Star) seed heads in September. Photo by Elaine L. Mills, 2014-09-30 Pollinator Garden, opposite Gulf Branch Nature Center, Arlington, Virginia.
Detail of Liatris spicata (Gayfeather, (Dense) Blazing Star) seed head in October. Photo by Elaine L. Mills, 2017-10-26, Glencarlyn Library Community Garden.
Tall and upright, Gayfeather provides nice vertical form in a garden. Its purplish, feathery flower spikes contrast well with yellow-flowered, mound-forming plants. Its widely scattered natural populations in the Mid-Atlantic Region include those in Arlington, Fairfax, and Loudon counties.
