About New York ironweed
Vernonia noveboracensis
Perennial Forb
Daisy Family
Maryland Distribution: Moist and wet meadows, sunny floodplains. Common throughout Maryland.
Height: 3-8 feet
Blooms: deep purple; August - September
Sun: full sun to partial sun
Soil: moist to average moisture, any texture
Garden Use & Maintenance: Easy to grow plant with a strongly clumping habit. Perennial beds, specimen plants, rain gardens, native meadows, screening, ditches, roadsides. In garden settings it performs well in average soils but not dry ones. If you have several plants and would like to extend bloom season, trim a few of them back in May or June. Tall sturdy stems add structure to garden and provide good winter interest. After seed dispersal, the stems are beautiful in dried arrangements or useful as light-weight garden stakes. Eschewed by livestock, it can become abundant in moist or wet pastures.
Wildlife: An excellent choice for the pollinator garden, attracting a nice diversity of bees and butterflies.