by CMG Betty J
Blazing Star
Blazing Star, Liatris mucronatza, is a fall-blooming native that thrives in the sparse caliche soil of the Hill Country. This perennial has stiff erect stems that grow up to 2 ½ feet tall with alternate leaves that are 2 inches to 4 inches long. The leaves decrease in length as they grow nearer the top of the stem, becoming small bracts near the flower heads.
Blazing Star Inflorescence
The purple flowers form a dense spike-like inflorescence that are 3 inches to 12 inches long; individual flowers are 1/4 inch to 3/8 inch long. The flowers open from the top of the spike downward. Blazing Stars bloom in the eastern two-thirds of the Hill Country from August to October.
These flowers are a good addition to a wildflower garden. They grow easily from fall or spring-planted corms and when cultivated grow tall and lush. Several Liatris species are the food plant for the larvae of some butterflies and moths.
Blazing Star Corm, Spike, Flower