Liatris Species, Blazing Star, Button Snakeroot, Marsh Gayfeather

On Jun 11, 2018, su_rose from Northport, NY wrote:

This is the 3rd summer for my liatris. They arrived as 12 rather dry corms. Planted them under a 2.5’ retaining wall facing west. Part shade, ab.6 hrs of sun. Decent garden soil. Sprouted very quickly and bloomed 1st year. Now they’ve multiplied and turned into a beautiful stand of foliage, lush and finely textured. An unexpected added bonus and an attrative contrast to my hydrangeas. In past 2 summers, they bloomed for most of July, the foliage looked very good thereafter. Even the seed spikes were decorative. Looking forward to lots of purple spikes soon. I am in z.7a.

On Apr 7, 2016, saskboy from Regina, SK (Zone 3b) wrote:

Does best with full morning sun/ light afternoon shade, and damp but not soggy soil.
The flowers are a vivid purple blue and butterflies swarm to it. However, the blooming period is short, and the plant itself is not particularly attractive after blooming.
I would recommend this for a butterfly or wild garden, where its unattractive foliage can be somewhat hidden.
Best seen from a slight distance, these are not what I would call accent plants.
Combine Liatris with milkweed and butterfly bush in an out of the way area, and you will have butterfly heaven.

On Apr 5, 2015, reeve1 from Plano, TX (Zone 8b) wrote:

I planted some in semi-shade (lathe shade under a pergola), some on the east side of my house getting about 6 hours of direct morning to early afternoon sun and a 3rd group in direct sun (8 hours afternoon to evening sun. The middle group in the east morning to afternoon direct sun grew the largest and did the best. The first group in lathe shade were small and spindly and not as full while the last group in full sun were hard to keep looking nice and would get slightly burned. This is in Plano, TX, just north of Dallas. It appears that placement is particularly important to get the best results. This goes with Liatris spicata "alba" (the white variant) as well. I sometimes grow bulbs I'm not familiar with in a pot the first season so that I can move them around, if necessary, to find the... read more best location before putting them in the ground.

On May 21, 2012, Toots1960 from West Hamlin, WV (Zone 6a) wrote:

These grow very pretty in my area. West Hamlin, West Virginia.

On Oct 20, 2010, mightymanfred from Sorrento, FL wrote:

Two years ago I planted a couple of these in my garden. The next year I got nothing. This spring a strange plant sprouted up in a different area that I did not recognize, but I was loath to pull it up. I left it alone and it turned out to be the liatris. I guess it came up from seed. It is now at least 6 feet tall! I'm 5'7" and it is taller than I am. Are they supposed to grow this tall? It is in full bloom at the moment and very pretty. Should I expect more next year?

On May 20, 2009, braun06 from Irving, TX (Zone 8a) wrote:

This is a very tough and easy to grow plant. It is a beautiful native. It does appear very suseptible to certain strains of verticillium wilt though. I planted 50 bulbs one year and they did great that year. The following spring they all grew and got to the point of flowering and half started curling back towards the ground. Nearly all of the original planting has died but seedlings have taken thier place in scattered areas.

On Mar 21, 2008, mbhoakct76 from Winsted, CT wrote:

The first couple years after plating this i had wished i planted them closer together because the flowers were so thin and shabby looking , it took a couple growing seasons for the plants to fill out - but they did and the flowers improved quite a bit to. I definately wasn't happy with them at first - but given time i would say its worth it. I am actually awaiting their return this year rather than dreading it !!

On Nov 20, 2006, Marilynbeth from Hebron, KY wrote:

I've grown the White and the purple versions and love them all. The rabbits love them too. I had white Liatris plants in the backyard garden and they ate the stalks down to the grown every year and the plants quit coming up.

More importantly, the BF's love them and so do the Goldfinches! The Goldfinches love eating the seeds from them, so I leave the stems up so they can feed from them.

Beautiful flowers.

On Jan 27, 2006, Gabrielle from (Zone 5a) wrote:

Liatris is a very pretty, easy to grow plant. Light aids germination of seeds. Blooms July-August in my garden.

On Aug 10, 2005, ADKSpirit from Elkton, MD (Zone 7a) wrote:

I have had very good success with this plant. Mine is only a little over a year old, and has tripled in size in that time. I have mine planted in a raised bed with my iris and a blue balloon flower, and the show was spectatular this year.

On Apr 22, 2005, julie88 from Muscoda, WI (Zone 4b) wrote:

I received about a dozen liatris bulbs as a 'freebie' in one of my plant orders in the spring of 2004. I didn't hold much hope that they would survive, much less thrive in my sandy "soil"...but I planted them anyway. Much to my surprise not only did they survive, they *multiplied*!

Early this spring (2005) I had to move the bulbs. I thought for sure they'd croak. Once again, these little 'troopers' surprised me. They broke the surface of the ground in their new location within a couple of weeks! And it looks as though there will be many more than the original dozen.

This is one plant that will be in my garden for a very long time. It has a wonderful lavender-blue color, it has a neat and predictable habit, it's easy to grow (obviously!) and it doesn't s... read moreeem to mind being moved. Liatris definitely adds character and interest to my flower beds.

Oh...and it grows well from seeds! I planted a handful of seeds using the 'Winter Sowing" method (seeds sown in containers and left to do their 'own thing' through the snowy and cold Wisconsin winter. They germinated well from collected seed and already have the beginnings of bulbous roots. I think I'll try a few of these new plants mixed in with my hostas in a shade bed. (Thanks for the info about them growing in the shade!)
~julie~

On Jul 4, 2004, PLANT_NUT from Charlotte, NC wrote:

Very low maintenance plant. Have had mine for three years in full sun and never had any volunteer seedlings. The same plants seem to just keep to themselves in tight little grassy clumps. Wonderful addition to any garden!

On May 19, 2004, KarinaAngelique from Houston, TX (Zone 9a) wrote:

I love this Liatris! They are spectacular... love the shape of the plant. Very easy to grow. They've been flowering nonstop since March (now it's May). I have them in pots & beds but it seems like they're happier in the sun rather than in shade.

On Jul 18, 2003, lmsmith4 from Niles, MI wrote:

Zone 5 - Excellent plant to add texture to garden. Tall, spiky, and hardy. Allowed to seed, spreads profusely-with little care. I find liatris in the most unexpected places and it is now growing well in both my sun and shade gardens.