All About Liatris – History, Meaning, Facts, Care & More

Liatris is a perennial plant that blooms colorful petals and its leaves remain green throughout its growing season. But ever wonder when did this flower originate? Take a look at the history, meaning, facts, care and more about Liatris flower that will truly capture your heart.

 

History of Liatris

The Liatris plant originated in North America. They used this plant as a herbal medicine for backache, limb pains, an even as an expectorant and dropsy. The leaves and roots are particularly important because it contains natural substances that treat sore throats, gonorrhoea, and as well as kidney diseases. The leaves and roots have other good benefits too. It can be used as a potpourri, insect repellant, and has antibacterial ingredients and anti-cancer substances.

 

Liatris Flower Meaning

Every flower represents different meanings. Its history oftentimes plays an important role in its meaning. For Liatris, it represents three meanings- joy, bliss, and happiness. This flower is one of the highly recommended wedding flowers by florists. But mostly, it is given as a romantic gift especially during Valentine’s Day. If you are celebrating a wedding anniversary, this flower is a great choice to express happiness in the relationship.

 

When you just received a flower bouquet of Liatris flower, you can preserve it. This flower is popular for drying because it dries well. There are a lot of techniques when it comes to drying flowers. The most popular and easy way of drying is through air dry. You can just hang it and leave it for at least 3 days and make sure it’s completely dried.

 

Interesting Facts About Liatris

The scientific name of liatris is liatris spicata. It is a member of the Asteraceae family. Aside from its name Liatris, this flower has other common names too. It can be called blazing-start, Gay-feather, and snakeroot. It officially the astrological flower of the sign Sagittarius.

 

Liatris is a perennial growing type of plant which means it can live for more than two years. However, it has a character of being hard to grow. Even though its colors can really attract your eyes, it is not easy to grow this flower. But some gardeners and florists still choose to grow this flower because deers and other wildlife animals like to move away from liatris because of its bitter and displeasing taste. But even if some animals stray away from liatris, butterflies actually love them. They like to pollinate and flock on them.

 

Liatris or blazing star blooms around mid-late summer. However, it takes one year for liatris to fully bloom. You cannot expect to see results right away when you plant this flower that is why you need to extend your patience on them. It can even take two years before its petals are in full bloom. Plus, it prefers soil that is fertile and well-drained. Should you decide to plant liatris, you need to find a perfect spot where it is sunny because they like to be exposed in a sunny area.

 

Liatris Physical Characteristics

When it comes to its physical attributes, you can easily identify this flower. Its head has spiky clusters that are sometimes white or purple in color that looks like the head of a mop. Its height, on the other hand, can grow as high as 4 feet tall and it has several flower heads that grow off on its sturdy stem. Its leaves are long and thin and can grow unevenly. No wonder this flower is called the blazing star because of its weird yet identifiable physical characteristics.

 

Liatris Planting Tips

1. Place your liatris in a sunny spot. Find a spot in your garden or yard where your liatris can be exposed in full sun. Liatris thrive better when they can get at least 6 hours of sunlight every day. It can handle both direct or indirect sunlight.

 

2. Make sure that the soil is well-drained. Look for a spot in your garden where the soil is well-drained. Observe where the water puddles when it’s raining. Do not plant them in an area where the water is prone to clogging because its roots will easily rot. Make sure the area dries quickly after rain. Liatris flowers are known to be hardy plants that can grow in a variety of soil.

 

3. Dig a hole at least 2 inches deep for every corm of liatris that you want to plant. You can use a shovel to dig shallow holes. You can buy them at your local garden shop or hardware store. However, if you are planting more than 1 corm of liatris, leave at least 12 inches of space between them. If you want to mulch the area where you planted the liatris, dig at least 1 inch of holes.

 

4. Water your liatris every other day or as needed. Use a watering can or your water hose at home to saturate the soil. Let it dry first before you start to water them again. Keep on watering them until the roots are fully established.

 

Liatris Care Tips

You should water your newly planted liatris corms as needed especially for the first few weeks. Once the roots are established, your liatris will only need little water so make sure the soil is dry between watering them. Although some plants need fertilizer to help them grow better, that is not the case with liatris. They do not really need fertilizer as long as its soil is well-drained and healthy. But if you want, you can opt to add fertilizer. You can put fertilizer prior to new growth in spring.