Prairie Ironweed (Vernonia fasciculata)
Prairie Ironweed is quite the statement plant! It is a back-of-the-border kind of plant that attracts many of our native bees (Illinoiswildflower.info). It is the host plant for the American Lady and 20 other species of butterflies and moths in our area (butterfliesandmoths.org) (nwf.org). It is also a host plant to 12 different specialist bees (Johnson and Colla, 2023)!. Plus, it is just nice to see those purple flowers late in the season, especially paired with Goldenrods. Herbivores tend to leave this plant alone due to its bitter foliage.
Photo credit: John Blair (2)
Prairie Ironweed is quite the statement plant! It is a back-of-the-border kind of plant that attracts many of our native bees (Illinoiswildflower.info). It is the host plant for the American Lady and 20 other species of butterflies and moths in our area (butterfliesandmoths.org) (nwf.org). It is also a host plant to 12 different specialist bees (Johnson and Colla, 2023)!. Plus, it is just nice to see those purple flowers late in the season, especially paired with Goldenrods. Herbivores tend to leave this plant alone due to its bitter foliage.
Photo credit: John Blair (2)
Prairie Ironweed is quite the statement plant! It is a back-of-the-border kind of plant that attracts many of our native bees (Illinoiswildflower.info). It is the host plant for the American Lady and 20 other species of butterflies and moths in our area (butterfliesandmoths.org) (nwf.org). It is also a host plant to 12 different specialist bees (Johnson and Colla, 2023)!. Plus, it is just nice to see those purple flowers late in the season, especially paired with Goldenrods. Herbivores tend to leave this plant alone due to its bitter foliage.
Photo credit: John Blair (2)
Life Cycle: Perennial
Sun Exposure: Full-Partial
Soil Moisture: Medium-wet, Medium
Height: 6 feet
Plant Spacing: 2-3 feet
Bloom Time: July-September
Bloom Color: Purple
Advantages: Caterpillar Favorite, Bird Favorite, Pollinator Favorite, Deer Resistant, Great Landscaping plant,
Host Plant: American Lady (butterfliesandmoths.org) 20 species of butterflies and moths use this as a caterpillar host plant in our area (nwf.org)
Specialist Bee: Melissodes boltoniae, M. coloradensis, M.denticulatus, M.dentiventris, M. druriellus, M. illatus, M. niveus, M. subillatus, M. vernoniae, Svastra obliqua, Megachile inimica, M. xylocopoides (Johnson and Colla, 2023) (Holm, 2017) (Johnson and Colla, 2023)
Resources: Holm, Heather. Bees: An Identification and Native Plant Forage Guide. Pollination Press, 2017
Resource: Johnson, Lorraine, and Sheila Colla. A Northern Gardener’s Guide to Native Plants and Pollinators: Creating Habitat in the Northeast, Great Lakes, and Upper Midwest. Island Press, 2023
