Hollow Joe-Pye weed is a stately native that rises on stout, purple, hollow stems to broad domes of soft mauve-pink flowers in late summer. At five to seven feet it is a commanding back-of-the-border plant and a butterfly magnet when little else is at peak.
Where it grows in North Carolina
A plant of damp, sunny ground — wet meadows, stream banks, ditches, and the moist edges of woods across the mountains, Piedmont, and Coastal Plain. It runs best where its roots never fully dry out.
Wildlife value
The flat-topped flower clusters are a premier late-season nectar source, drawing swallowtails, monarchs, fritillaries, skippers, and a constant traffic of native bees during the build-up to fall migration.
In the garden
Site it at the back of a moist border, rain garden, or pond edge in full sun to part shade, and keep the soil consistently damp. Cut stems back in late winter, leaving some standing through the cold months for overwintering insects.