Blazing Star

Blazing Star

Common name:  Blazing star, Prairie Gay Feather, Button Snakewort

Scientific name:  Liatris spicata

Family:  Aster, Daisy, or Composite; Asteraceae

Bloom period:  July to August

What to look for:  We have two different cultivars.  L. spicata ‘Kobold’ has the traditional purple-colored flowers and the other cultivar has white flowers.  The flowers bloom from the top down on tall spikes.  Grass-like leaves are clumped around the base of the plant.

Where to see it:  Blazing star is scattered throughout the building 1 and building 2 gardens.

Benefit to pollinators:  Blazing star attracts many pollinators and beneficial insects, including butterflies (e.g., monarch, tiger swallowtail, clouded sulphur, orange sulphur, gray hairstreak, Aphrodite fritillary, painted lady), bumblebees and other bees, and birds including hummingbirds.  Caterpillars of the rare glorious flower moth and liatris flower moth feed on the flowers and seeds.  

More info:  L. spicata was historically used medicinally by Native Americans for its diuretic, stimulant, analgesic, and expectorant properties.  They also used the plant to treat swelling, abdominal pain, weak heart, and snake bites.  Currently, the plant is used for a sore throat by gargling an infusion and as an herbal insect repellent.