Prairie blazing star

The term 'liatris' isn't defined in Stern's dictionary of Plant Names. Its of unknown derivation. 'Pycnostachya' comes from Greek, meaning crowded or dense spike, which refers to the dense flowers on the stem or spike.

There are numerous common names for this plant. Gayfeather and Prairie Blazing Star or simply (Blazing Star) seem to be the most commonly used.

Liatris are found in the tribe Eupatorieae within the Asteraceae family.

The purple to lavender (sporadically white) flowers of Liatris pycnostachya bloom from the top of the spike down. There are many small, tufted flowerheads on each spike. Individual flowers within a flower head have 5 lobes with 2 long styles and 5 stamens. The flowerheads are enveloped by showy reddish to green bracts with recurved tips.

Prairie blazing star is a perennial native wildflower, growing from a corm. Each plant is formed from a single stem that typically has short, whitish hairs. Some plants may reach 6 feet in good conditions, but most are about 4 feet tall.

Numerous alternate, grass-like leaves surround the plant. The leaves are larger at the base (up to 10" long), becoming smaller further up the stem. They may be hairy to glabrous.

After flowering, the plant is still beautiful with its long stem full of ripe, brown seeds. As autumn approaches, the leaves often turn beautiful shades of yellow often mixed with red and green.

When ripe, the seed is pleasant to harvest. Place one hand on the lower stem to support the plant and with the other hand, pull upward on the plant, filling your hand with ripe, brown seed. We spread seed to new areas on our property in this way during Autumn. Plants often bloom in their second year.

I've read that Liatris pycnostachya is wonderful as a cut flower, but I haven't had the heart to actually cut any! For cut flowers, I think I'll stick to the zinnias growing in my veggie garden.

The insect activity on Liatris pycnostachya is fascinating to observe. There are many butterflies, skippers, bees, hummingbird moths, wasps and other interesting insects seeking nectar.

Bumble Bees are probably the most effective pollinators but other insects listed above also pollinate the flowers.

Take a look below at this Hummingbird moth quickly probing many flowers with its long proboscis.

Below is an image collection of the butterflies I've documented visiting these flowers.

Here is an image collection of the Skippers I've documented visiting the flowers.

Prairie blazing star isn't too picky about its habitat. I usually find it in Prairie and grasslands. Yet, it can also be at home in glades and savannas. In cultivation it can benefit from some afternoon shade during the hot summers, but it usually handles full sun quite well.

Liatris pycnostachya is native to the midwest and eastern states. Natureserve lists its overall status as G5- Secure. It is considered Critically Imperiled in South Dakota and Indiana and Apparently Secure in Iowa. All other states within its range show No status ranking.

Prairie Blazing Star is a wonderful plant for observing dragonflies. Since there are scores of insects visiting the plants, it's terrific hunting ground for them. On top of that, the tall spikes are perfect resting spots.