Joe Pye Weed

My grandmother calls this "Queen of the Meadow" - a regal name for a plant that easily reaches 9 feet tall! - but most people know it as Joe Pye Weed. This is one of those plants previously considered weedy that has recently gained popularity as an ornamental. It presents its small cloud of lilac-pink flowers from mid-summer until the first frosts, and is very attractive to butterflies, bees, and other beneficial nectar-feeding insects.