(Eutrochium maculatum)
The tall gorgeous beauty with towering blooms that reach to the sky has a distinct, sweet, and warm vanilla-like aroma. When leaves are broken or crushed, they also emit this vanilla scent.
The truth behind the legend of Joe Pye may be lost to the ages, but the name is of Native American origin. One enduring legend is that this plant was named for Joe Pye, a tribal herbalist who befriended New England settlers and shared his knowledge of herbal medicines with them. He became famous for using this plant to treat typhoid fever. A recent historical deep dive by scientists from the Royal Botanical Gardens in Canada concludes that Joe Pye was Joseph Shauquethqueat, an early 19th-century Mohican sachem, who lived successively in the Mohican communities near Stockbridge, Massachusetts, and near white communities in New Stockbridge, New York. He may not have been a practicing herbalist in the tribal community, but nevertheless, he used and shared his herbal knowledge with the people in the area.
Joe wasn’t the only Native American to use the robust summer bloomer as strong medicine. The Chippewas used infusions of all the plant parts to treat swollen joints. The Potawatomis made poultices from the leaves for burns and used the flowers as good luck charms. The Ojibwas used Joe-Pye weed to bless babies. Children were given baths in herb water to soothe and calm them. European settlers used the knowledge handed down from the Native Americans and kept Joe-Pye weed in the “medicine cabinet”. Later 19th century Americans used it for kidney and urinary infections. Modern herbals still recommend the tea as a kidney tonic and as a diuretic.
ZONE: 3-9
POLLINATOR: Yes
DEER RESISTANT: Yes
DROUGHT TOLERANT: Moderate once established
EVERGREEN: No
SPREADS BY SEED: Yes
NEEDS A CROSS POLLINATOR: Wind pollinated
AGE OF PLANT: 1yr
MATURE HEIGHT: 4-12ft tall & 2-4ft wide
JOE PYE | QUEEN OF THE MEADOW
PLANTING & GROWING
Joe-Pye weed likes its “feet wet” and grows in sunny wet meadows and lowlands along streams and rivers.
MEDICINAL BENEFITS
- Frequently used to break up kidney stones, relieve bladder infections, and treat kidney, bladder, and urinary ailments
- The plant acts as a diaphoretic (promotes sweating) to help lower fevers, historically used for treating typhus, colds, and flu
- Used to treat rheumatism, achy joints, and gout
Note: The plant contains unsaturated pyrrolizidine alkaloids, which can be toxic to the liver if used in "large" doses or over a long period.
Joe-Pye weed is not poisonous, but there are poisonous relatives in the Eupatorium genus.
* These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. These products are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any diseases.
FLAVOR & PAIRING
This plant is not typically used in a culinary fashion.