States
North CarolinaTennesseeGeorgiaSouth CarolinaKentuckyAlabamaArkansasFloridaLouisianaMississippiVirginiaWest Virginia
Menu

Spotted Joe-pye-weed

Eutrochium maculatum

81
Keystone

Native to West Virginia. How scores work Is it native here?

Profile 100%

Height
4–7 feet
Spread
3–4 feet
Light
Full sun, Partial shade
Soil moisture
Usually moist

Space about 3.5 ft apart from its recorded spread, about 8 per 100 sq ft. Enter your bed size for a count

Will it fit your yard?

Rare or protected plant. Specialist conservation planting; excluded from routine garden suggestions. Plant caution source

Hidden from default planting suggestions. Wildlife value and native status remain unchanged.

At a glance

Life cycle
Perennial
Bloom
July to September

Not yet recorded · Leaves

Recorded in 1 West Virginia county.

Also found with this plant

Wildlife whose habitat models include habitats this plant grows in, in West Virginia. Shared habitat, not food. 39 animals.

All wildlife of West Virginia

Ecological relationships

Who uses this plant?

What these records mean

36CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including WV

Genus host records with ranges including WV · Eupatorium

  • Agonopterix pulvipennellaGoldenrod Leaffolder, Featherduster Agonopterix
  • Anavitrinella pampinariaCommon Gray, Cranberry Spanworm
  • Carmenta bassiformisEupatorium Borer Moth, Ironweed Clearwing Moth
  • Carmenta pyralidiformisBoneset Borer Moth
  • Chlorochlamys chloroleucariaBlackberry Looper Moth
  • Chrysodeixis includensSoybean Looper Moth
  • Cisseps fulvicollisYellow-Collared Scape Moth
  • Condica vecorsDusky Groundling
  • Dichomeris setosellaHairy Dichomeris
  • Digrammia continuataCurve-Lined Angle
Show all 36
  • Dysodia oculatanaEyed Thyris
  • Estigmene acreaSalt Marsh Moth, Acrea Moth
  • Eupithecia miserulataCommon Eupithacia, Common Pug
  • Feltia subgothicaSubgothic Dart
  • Feltia tricosaConfused Dart, Tricose Dart
  • Haploa clymeneClymene Moth
  • Oedemasia concinnaRed-Humped Caterpillar, Red-Humped Appleworm
  • Oidaematophorus eupatoriiEupatorium Plume Moth
  • Orthodes majusculaRustic Quaker, Rustic Groundcat
  • Ostrinia obumbratalisSmartweed Borer
  • Papaipema cataphractaBurdock Border, Potato-Stalk Borer
  • Papaipema eupatoriiJoe-Pye Weed Borer, Eupatorium Borer Moth
  • Papaipema harrisiiHeracleum Stem Borer Moth, Cow Parsnip Borer
  • Perigea xanthioidesRed Groundling
  • Phragmatobia fuliginosaRuby Tiger Moth
  • Phragmatobia lineataLined Ruby Tiger Moth
  • Platynota flavedanaBlack-Shaded Platynota
  • Pleuroprucha insulsariaCommon Tan Wave
  • Schinia trifasciaThree-Lined Flower Moth
  • Spoladea recurvalisHawaiian Beet Webworm
  • Synchlora aerataWavy-Lined Emerald, Camouflaged Looper
  • Tornos scolopacinariaDimorphic Gray
  • Agonopterix atrodorsella
  • Agonopterix eupatoriiella
  • Chionodes pseudofondella
  • Dichomeris washingtoniella
Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)
34BeesSoutheastern regional records

Southeastern regional records · Eupatorium

Individual names are not available yet.

Noori, Seltmann & Orr 2026, A curated and integrated dataset for exploring global bee-plant interactions (GloBI), Zenodo, CC BY 4.0
4Specialist beesPollen specialists

Pollen specialists · Eutrochium

  • Dieunomia heteropoda
  • Megachile xylocopoides
  • Melissodes denticulatus
  • Melissodes druriellus
Smith, Bachelder, Russell, Morales, Mosher & Seltmann 2024, Bee-Specialization-Modeling v0.6.1 (specialist host table compiled from J. Fowler's pollen specialist bee lists), Zenodo, CC BY 4.0
1BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim

Recorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim · Eupatorium

  • Ortalis vetulaPlain Chachalaca
Hurlbert, Olsen, Sawyer & Winner 2021, Avian Diet Database, Scientific Data 8: 260 (CC0)

Direct food only: birds recorded eating this genus across North America. Caterpillars on host plants also feed nesting birds. NC Native Plant Society: butterfly gardening

No records yet · Ants · Beetles · Flies · Adult butterflies / moths · Other wasps · Other insects

Growing and identification

Plant details

Family
Asteraceae
Hardiness
Zones 3a–8b
Soil pH
Alkaline
Flower color
Pink or purple

What its natural habitat tells you

Growing sources and scope
  • Bloom · “July to September” · Prairie Moon 2026 Cultural Guide · Nursery cultural guide; height in flower; moisture categories retained as printed
  • Flower color · “Pink or purple” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; Prairie Moon 2026 Cultural Guide differs)
  • Hardiness · “Zones 3a–8b” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; Missouri Botanical Garden Plant Finder differs)
  • Height · “4–7 feet” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; Minnesota Wildflowers, Prairie Moon 2026 Cultural Guide differ)
  • Life cycle · “Perennial” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
  • Light · “Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day); Partial shade (direct sunlight only part of the day, 2-6 hours)” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center, Missouri Botanical Garden Plant Finder, Prairie Moon 2026 Cultural Guide differ)
  • Soil · “Moist; Occasionally wet” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center, Missouri Botanical Garden Plant Finder, Prairie Moon 2026 Cultural Guide differ)
  • Soil pH · “Alkaline” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
  • Spread · “3–4 feet” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
Also known as

Eupatorium maculatum; Spotted Joe Pye Weed; thoroughwort

Conservation status

West Virginia rankS2
Global rankG5
WV statusNot verified
Federal statusNot verified

Conservation source Global and federal source

In your garden

Will it fit your yard?

Check this plant against your county, sun and soil moisture. Conditions are checked in your browser.

Choose a county to begin.

How to check your spot

Sources