Butterfly magnet and more
By Ken Moore
My plan to follow up on exotic invasives this week will have to wait. It’s been side-tracked by Joe-Pye. I featured Joe-Pye weed, Eupatorium fistulosum, in Flora way back on Aug. 9, 2007, so I won’t repeat here about the plant’s name, medicinal heritage and how to grow it.
Joe-Pye is definitely my favorite plant. In addition to being a magnet for butterflies, it provides me with more weeks of appeal than just about any other plant I know!
I leave the domed skeletal remains standing tall throughout the winter for architectural interest. I enjoy watching the new season’s growth emerge from the base of the plants. By mid-summer, those stems may reach a height of 12 feet. My gardening friend Sally Heiney has Joe-Pyes that are 11 and a half feet tall. This year, mine are only 9 feet, 9 inches tall, but that’s perfect, because, since they’re at the base of my deck, I can peer right into the large flowering heads.
I’ve been peering into those flower heads for a couple of weeks now, enjoying the slow progression from tiny pink flower buds to mature disc (tube) flowers.
Hundreds of little clusters of disc flowers make up that big dome configuration. As each disc flower opens, it looks like a five-pointed star from which protrude two brilliant pink threads. Those threads are the stigma tips of the pistil, the female part of the flower, waiting for some insect to deliver pollen from the stamens of another flower.
It’s been amazing to observe the progression of different kinds of insects visiting the flower heads throughout the day. Early morning brings little green sweat bees and similar species. Butterflies seem to prefer the afternoon and early evenings. Whatever the time, there’s always a hive of activity to watch.
When friends show up, I used to say, “Hey, come see my flowers!†But these days I call out, “Hey, come see my bugs!â€
Last week, my eye caught something I’ve never before encountered. It looked like an inchworm with tiny flower parts attached to its back. I couldn’t believe my eyes as that little critter stretched forward, severed one of those thread-like stigmas and twisted backwards to attach it to its body. That little inchworm had become perfectly camouflaged, hidden from predators among those clusters of flowers. Then, with confidence, the inchworm proceeded to eat the stigmas of nearby flowers.
Having no idea what I was seeing, I called my friend Sally to see if she had any on her Joe-Pyes. She had not seen any, but based on my description she suggested I check out an image of a wavy-lined emerald moth caterpillar. As usual, Sally was right. That’s what I’ve been watching this entire past week; it’s much cheaper than going to a movie.
Joe-Pye weed is noticeable now in ditches and low places along rural roadsides. We should all have Joe-Pye weeds growing somewhere in our gardens and yards. They’re available at just about any nursery or garden center that features natives. In additional to the flowers and butterflies, you’ll enjoy inviting friends over to see the bugs in your garden.
Comments are closed.