Often known as gayfeathers or blazing stars, these herbaceous perennials are a member of the aster family, Asteraceae, that also includes daisy, zinnia, and lettuce. They are native to North America where they grow in well-drained soil in full sun. The plants have strong straight stems that carry narrow leaves and terminate in a spike-like inflorescence of 15-45 purple flowerheads. The flowerheads are composed entirely of disc florets and open from the top to the bottom of the spike. Many species have flowers that are attractive to pollinators including butterflies, and are good in bouquets.
Photo Credit: Matt Lavin, Wikimedia Commons
The climate of the Southwest has resulted in at least sixteen native species of Liatris there but they may be native to other places too. All of the Liatris described below are native to at least one states in the Midwest as well as in other areas.
Gulf Coast Gayfeather (Liatris acidota)
Also known as sharp blazing star, this native of eastern Texas as well as the Southeast and can be found in coastal prairies, dry prairie and savanna. It grows up to about 4′ tall and forms a basal clump of fine textured leaves with a gently arching flower spike. The purple flowers appear from early summer into fall and attract butterflies and bees.
Height: 8″-4′
Bloom Time: Summer to fall
Bloom Color: Purple
Light: Full sun
Soil: Sand to clay, medium moist, well-drained, acidic; drought tolerant once established
USDA Hardiness Zones: 7-9
Photo Credit: Laura Clark, Wikimedia Commons
Summer Gayfeather (Liatris aestivalis)
This native of north central Texas and south central Oklahoma, is associated with shallow soils, limestone outcrops, Blackland prairies, pine-oak woodlands and oak-juniper woodlands. It produces a clump of narrow leaves from which a flowering stalk emerges in mid- to late summer. Each flowering stalk is 18-22″ tall and bears a spike of densely packed deep purple flowerheads that are attractive to native bees.
Height: 18-22″
Bloom Time: Summer into fall
Bloom Color: Dark purple
Light: Full sun
Soil: Thin, dry, well-drained, alkaline
USDA Hardiness Zones: 6-9 (?)
Photo Credit: Mason Brock, Wikimedia Commons
Rough Blazing Star (Liatris aspera)
Rough blazing star is also known as button blazing star, lacerate blazing star, tall prairie blazing star, and tall gayfeather. It is native to Texas and Oklahoma as well as places in the Midwest, Southeast and Mid-Atlantic where it grows in prairies, open woods, glades, meadows and open disturbed areas such as along roads and train tracks. A basal clump of very narrow lance-shaped leaves up to 12″ long give rise to leafy racemes that carry widely spaced purple flowerheads about 3/4″ across and are attractive hummingbirds, butterflies, and other pollinators, as well as being good in the vase. The seeds are enjoyed by songbirds.
Height: 2-3′ (occasionally to 6′)
Bloom Time: Summer to fall
Bloom Color: Purple
Light: Full sun
Soil: Average, dry to medium, well-drained
USDA Hardiness Zones: 3-8
Photo Credit: Wikipedia
Bracted Blazing Star (Liatris bracteata)
Native to coastal prairies of Texas, this threatened wildflower, is also known as South Texas gayfeather. The foliage is linear and dotted with glands and the flowers are carried in loose heads widely spaced on the flowering stems 10-30″ long. The flowers appear in late summer to fall and are attractive to bees.
Height: 10-30″
Bloom Time: Late summer into fall
Bloom Color: Purple
Light: Full sun
Soil: Clay to silt, moderately moist, well-drained, slightly acidic
USDA Hardiness Zones: 9 (?)
Photo Credit: Larry Allain, USDA
Arkansas Gayfeather (Liatris compacta)
This herbaceous perennial is native to Oklahoma and as well as areas in the Southeast where it is found growing on rocky ridges, bluffs, hillsides, weathered sandstone, and in open woods. The leaves are narrow and the basal foliage often withers before the flowers appear. The spike-like flowering stems are 8.8-20″ long. They carry, purplish pink flower heads with leaf-like bracts singly or in clusters in summer. The flowers are loosely arranged and are attractive to butterflies and other pollinators.
Height: 8.8-20″
Bloom Time: Summer
Bloom Color: Purplish pink
Light: Full sun
Soil: Average, dry to medium moist, well-drained
USDA Hardiness Zone: 8 (?)
Photo Credit: Eric Hunt, Wikimedia Commons
Barrelhead Blazing Star (Liatris cylindracea)
Also known as cylindrical blazing star, Ontario blazing star, and dwarf blazing star, this herbaceous perennial is native to Oklahoma as well as to areas in the Southeast, Midwest and western Mid Atlantic. The leaves are narrow and up to 10″ long. The spike-like flower stems are up to 2′ tall, and carry fluffy, rose-purple flowers singly or in small clusters. Each flowerhead is subtended by a tight elongated cylinder of sharp-pointed involucral bracts. The flowers appear in mid- to late summer and are attractive to humming birds, butterflies, and other pollinators. The seeds attract song birds.
Height: 1.5-2′
Bloom Time: Mid- to late summer
Bloom Color: Rose-purple
Light: Full sun
Soil: Average, dry to medium moist, well-drained, alkaline
USDA Hardiness Zones: 4-7
Photo Credit: Mason Brock, Wikipedia
Aggie-land gayfeather (Liatris cymosa)
Endemic to east central Texas, aggie-land gayfeather is also known as branched blazing star. It is found in open post oak woodlands, other woodland openings and edges, oak savannas, grasslands, fields, fence rows. The thin leaves are 3-5″ long with the largest at the base of the stems. The flowerheads are borne terminally in loose cluster of 2-20 on widely branched stems and consist of 25 densely packed pink to purple disc florets.
Height: 10-30″
Bloom Time: Mid- summer to mid- fall
Bloom Color: Purple, pink
Light: Full sun, tolerates some shade
Soil: Fertile, medium moist, well-drained; somewhat drought tolerant once established
USDA Hardiness Zones: 7? to ?
Photo Credit: Eric Keith, I Naturalist
Elegant blazingstar (Liatris elegans)
Also known as pinkscale blazingstar, this attractive wildflower is native to dry, sandy soils in the prairies and pineland habitats of Texas and Oklahoma as well as several areas of the Southeast. The leaves are narrow, up to 3′ long, dotted with glands, and the lower ones often wither before the flowers appear. The spike like flower stems are 6-48″ long and carry densely packed flowerheads on all sides of the stem. The flowers appear from late summer to late fall and attracts Monarch butterflies, native bees, and other pollinators.
Height: 6-48″
Bloom Time: Late summer to late fall
Bloom Color: Pink, purplish, white, or yellow
Light: Full sun
Soil: Sandy, dry, well-drained
USDA Hardiness Zones: 6-10
Photo Credit: Mike Owsley USDA-NRCS, Wikimedia Commons
Hairy Gayfeather (Liatris hirsuta)
Native to Texas and Oklahoma as well as parts of the Midwest and Southeast, hairy gayfeather can be found on rocky bluffs, in glades, and in upland prairies. Both stems and leaves are hairy. The leaves are linear to linear-lanceolate and up to 8″ long. The spike-like flowering stem grows up to 30″ tall and carries a terminal flower head and additional flowerheads loosely arranged on the stem in the axils of the upper leaves. The flowers are pink to reddish purple or magenta and attractive to butterflies.
Height: Up to 30″
Bloom Time: Summer
Bloom Color: Pink to reddish purple or magenta
Light: Full sun
Soil: Average, dry, well-drained
USDA Hardiness Zones: 5-9
Photo Credit: Eric Hunt, Wikimedia Commons
Lanceleaf Blazing Star (Liatris lancifolia)
Also known as Great Plains gayfeather, this liatris is native to meadows and slopes of New Mexico and Texas as well as places in the Rocky Mountain area and Midwest. The narrow leaves are 2-8″ long with the largest at the base of tall flowering stems. Flowerheads are carried in dense terminal spikes of 15 or less, and are composed of purplish-pink disc flowers.
Height: 8-48″
Bloom Time: Late summer to early fall
Bloom Color: Pink, purple
Light: Sun
Soil: Medium moist, well-drained
USDA Hardiness Zones: 3-9 ?
Photo Credit: jencorman, iNaturalist
Rocky Mountain Blazing Star (Liatris ligulistylis)
Also known as northern plains blazing star, and meadow blazing star, this showy perennial is native to New Mexico, as well as parts of the Rocky Mountain area and Midwest. Both stem and leaves are hairy and the leaves vary from oblanceolate at base to linear high on the stem. Flowerheads are loosely arranged on spike-like flowering stems 3-5′ long. The flowers may be purple, lavender, or pink and are attractive to butterflies, especially monarchs, and other pollinators.
Height: 3-5′
Bloom Time: Late summer
Bloom Color: Purple, lavender, pink
Light: Full sun
Soil: Average, medium moist, well-drained
USDA Hardiness Zones: 3-6
Photo Credit: Nadiatalent, Wikimedia Commons
Dotted Gayfeather/Blazing Star (Liatris punctata)
Dotted gayfeather is native to New Mexico, Texas and Oklahoma as well as much of the Midwest, and some of the Rocky Mountain area and Southeast. It can be found in a variety of habitats including grasslands, prairies, chaparral, sagebrush, ponderosa pine forests, and pinyon-juniper woodlands. Growing from a deep root system, the plant forms a clump of grass-like leaves up to 4″ long and dotted with resin. From late summer to fall, flowering stems up to 24″ long bear 10-12″ long terminal spikes of densely packed rosy lavender flower heads that are attractive to butterflies and other pollinators. Seeds attract birds.
Height: 1-2′
Bloom Time: Late summer to fall
Bloom Color: Rosy-lavender
Light: Full sun
Soil: Average, dry to medium moist, well-drained, acidic; tolerates alkaline soil and drought
USDA Hardiness Zones: 4-9
Photo Credit: Matt Lavin, Wikimedia Commons
Prairie Blazing Star (Liatris pycnostachya)
Also known as cattail blazing star and cattail gayfeather, this popular wildflower is native to prairies, bluffs, and open areas of Texas and Oklahoma as well as areas in the Midwest and Southeast. It forms basal tufts of narrow, lanceolate leaves up to 12″ long and flowering stalks 2-5′ tall carrying flower heads in dense 20″ long terminal spikes. The flowerheads appear in summer and are dark rose-purple, 3/4″ across, and attractive to hummingbirds, butterflies and other pollinators. The seeds are attractive to songbirds.
Height: 2-5′
Bloom Time: Summer
Bloom Color: Dark rose-purple
Light: Full sun
Soil: Average, dry to medium moist, well-drained; tolerates poor soils, drought, summer heat and humidity.
USDA Hardiness Zones: 3-9
Photo Credit: Eric Hunt, Wikimedia Commons
Scaly Blazing Star (Liatris squarrosa)
Scaly blazing star is native to Oklahoma and Texas as well as to parts of the Mid-Atlantic, Rocky Mountain area, Midwest, and Southeast. It grows in a variety of habitats including woodlands, savannah, and prairie. The linear leaves are 3-6″ long and less numerous than those of other Liatris species. From summer into fall, tuft-like flower heads appear sparsely arranged on the ends of flowering stems 1-3′ tall. The flower heads are purple, up to 1″ across, and attracts humming birds, butterflies, and other pollinators.
Height: 1-3′
Bloom Time: Summer to fall (relatively early bloomer)
Bloom Color: Purple
Light: Full sun
Soil: Sandy or rocky, medium-dry to dry, well-drained
USDA Hardiness Zones: 4-8
Photo Credit: Mason Brock
Appalachian Blazing Star (Liatris squarrulosa)
Also known as southern blazing star, this wildflower is native to prairies, meadows and savannahs of Texas and Oklahoma as well as areas in the Midwest and Southeast. The lower leaves are narrow oblanceolate and up to 11″ but become more linear and shorter as they go up the stem. From mid-summer to fall, pinkish purple flower heads appear on unbranched stems. They are up to 1″ across and attract pollinators.
Height: 2-6′
Bloom Time: Mid-summer through fall
Bloom Color: Pinkish-purple
Light: Full sun; tolerates some shade
Soil: Sandy, to rocky loam, medium moist to dry, well-drained
USDA Hardiness Zones: 6-9
Photo Credit: Eric Hunt, Wikimedia Commons
Gulf Blazing Star/Gulf Gayfeather (Liatris tenuis)
Also known as Shiners blazing star, this rare liatris is native to the sandy pine uplands in eastern Texas and western Louisiana. The plants produce one to several stems with maturity, and carry crowded, linear leaves that up to 6″ long at the bottom but decrease in size upward and are reduced to .4-1″ long bracts at the top. Spike like racemes 3-5″ long carry solitary flowerheads in the axils of the upper leaves and consist of 10-11 lavender to purple disc florets.
Height: 12-24′
Bloom Time: Summer
Bloom Color: Lavender to purple
Light: Full sun
Soil: Gritty, well-drained
USDA Hardiness Zones 8-10
Photo Credit: Sonia HIll, Flora of the Southeast
For the purpose of this article, the Southwest comprises the states of Texas, Oklahoma, New Mexico and Arizona. Other states often associated with the Southwest are included in other geographic areas. The key factor linking these four states is aridity. The area includes high dry plains and true deserts as well as spurs of the Rocky Mountains. Only Texas has a coast on the ocean which brings east Texas and Oklahoma more precipitation and humidity than elsewhere in the states. In addition to the ocean, the Rio Grande and Colorado Rivers are significant water features in the area. Although temperatures in the mountains can be cool, most of the area experiences hot temperatures for a long period each year.