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Hyssop boneset is found in meadows. Good choice for restoration and conservation or use as an ornamental.

Hyssop boneset is found in meadows. Good choice for restoration and conservation or use as an ornamental. USDA, NRCS. 2012. The PLANTS Database (http://plants.usda.gov, 8 October 2012). National Plant Data Team, Greensboro, NC 27401-4901 USA.

Eupatorium hyssopifolium

Hyssop leaved boneset

Native to North America


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FIRST IMPRESSIONS:  Eupatorium hyssopifolium is a fine textured vase shaped perennial.  Foliage is narrow and gray green.  In late summer plants are covered with dense flat terminal clusters of white florets.  The clouds of flowers attract a myriad of pollinators.  This species thrives in well drained or dry sites with sun or part sun. 

HABITAT & HARDINESS:  Eupatorium hyssopifolium occurs in the eastern United States from Massachusetts to Florida and west to Missouri and Texas.  Distribution is widest in the coastal plain.

Plants are indigenous to dry grasslands, sandy or gravelly fields and roadsides, rights of ways, dry open woods and salt meadows.

This species is hardy from USDA Zones 4-8.

PLANT DESCRIPTION:  Eupatorium hyssopifolium is an upright perennial wildflower that produces multiple stems from short rhizomes. 

Stems are clothed in linear gray green leaves.  Blades are 4” long and less than ½” wide.  They taper at the base and tip and are arranged along the stems in whorls of 4.

From mid-summer until autumn, plants bear terminal flat topped flower corymbs that range from 4-10” across.  The budded florets show color for several weeks before expanding into small feathery white disk florets. 

The late season flower displays are magnificent especially when plants are massed. The blossoms mature into soft buff colored seed clusters that mingle nicely with flowering autumn grasses.

Plants are 2-4’ tall with an average 2’ spread.

CULTURAL & MAINTENANCE NEEDSEupatorium hyssopifolium prefers full to part sun.  Plants require good drainage and thrive in mesic or dry sandy soils.

This species is pest resistant and foliage is unpalatable to deer and other herbivores.

LANDSCAPE USES:  In bloom, Eupatorium hyssopifolium is a dramatic Accent for a Wildlife Garden or Meadow. Plants are lovely in combination with native grasses and golden fall flowers.  Plants are also used as Butterfly Nectar Plants, Cut Flowers or as part of a Grouping or Mass Planting. This wildflower has Showy Blooms and provides Erosion Control.  It can be used in Cottage Gardens, Deer Resistant Plantings, Rain Gardens, Water-wise Landscapes, Low Maintenance Plantings or Perennial Borders.

COMPANION & UNDERSTUDY PLANTS:  Try pairing with Aster laevis, Echinacea purpurea, Monarda fistulosa, Liatris spicata, Rudbeckia fulgida var. fulgida, Solidago rugosa ‘Fireworks’, Sorghastrum nutans, Schizachyrium scoparium or Andropogon virginicus,

Eupatorium coelestinum is a possible substitute if blue flowers are acceptable.  The two plants have similar height, flower shape, cultural needs and bloom time.  Although Eupatorium hyssopifolium, however, will tolerate drier sites and more drought.

TRIVIA:  Unlike other members of the Aster Family, Eupatorium spp. flowers are composed only of disc florets with no rays.

Flowers attract butterflies, skippers, moths and native bees.  This species is particularly valuable to beneficial insects.

Eupatorium hyssopifolium (or hyssop leaf thoroughwort) along with the closely related E. perfoliatum are members of the Thoroughwort Tribe. Plants are occasionally called justice weed because in the 1800’s this species was used medicinally by South Carolinian John Justice to treat rattlesnake bites.

Eupatorium hyssopifolium has been lauded as a champ for dry meadows and an underused garden gem by the likes of Tony Avent and Rick Darke.  To see this spectacular species in full autumn flower, visit Longwood Gardens in September.  Or peruse internet photos of the Meadow Garden and Hourglass Lake where this lovely is massed majestically.


Height:

2-4 ft

Spread:

1-2 ft

Spacing:

2-3 ft

USDA Hardiness Zone:

4-8

Bloom Color:

White

Eupatorium hyssopifolium Characteristics

Attracts Wildlife

  • Butterflies

Attributes

  • Naturalizing
  • East-Coast Native
  • Drought Tolerant
  • Rain Garden
  • Cut Flower
  • Clay Soil

Exposure

  • Full Sun to Partial Shade

Flowering Months

  • August
  • October
  • September

Foliage Color

  • Green

Growth Rate

  • Fast

Juglans nigra Tolerance (Black Walnut)

  • Yes

Season of Interest (Foliage)

  • Spring
  • Summer

Soil Moisture Preference

  • Moist to Dry

Interesting Notes:

For more information on this plant, visit the USDA PLANTS Database: http://plants.usda.gov/java/profile?symbol=euhy


Plants that work well with Eupatorium hyssopifolium ''

Trumpet creeper Trumpet creeper (Campsis radicans)
Pink tickseed Pink tickseed (Coreopsis rosea)
Smooth blue aster Smooth blue aster (Aster laevis)
Wild bergamot Wild bergamot (Monarda fistulosa)
Dense blazing star Dense blazing star (Liatris spicata)
Black-eyed Susan Black-eyed Susan (Rudbeckia fulgida v. fulgida)
Wrinkle-leaf goldenrod Wrinkle-leaf goldenrod (Solidago rugosa 'Fireworks')
Broom sedge Broom sedge (Andropogon virginicus)
Little bluestem - 2022 Perennial Plant of the Year Little bluestem - 2022 Perennial Plant of the Year (Schizachyrium scoparium 'Standing Ovation PP 25202')
Little bluestem - 2022 Perennial Plant of the Year Little bluestem - 2022 Perennial Plant of the Year (Schizachyrium scoparium 'The Blues')
Little bluestem - 2022 Perennial Plant of the Year Little bluestem - 2022 Perennial Plant of the Year (Schizachyrium scoparium 'The Blues')
Little bluestem - 2022 Perennial Plant of the Year Little bluestem - 2022 Perennial Plant of the Year (Schizachyrium scoparium 'The Blues')
Showy goldenrod Showy goldenrod (Solidago speciosa)
Creeping goldenrod (No Advance Orders) Creeping goldenrod (No Advance Orders) (Solidago sphacelata 'Golden Fleece')

Substitutions for Eupatorium hyssopifolium

Mistflower, hardy ageratum Mistflower, hardy ageratum (Eupatorium coelestinum)