Name:   Eryngium yuccifolium aka rattlesnake master

Type of Plant:  A tall perennial that’s a native to the Midwest and mid-Atlantic states. Hardy in zone 4 – 9 and grows 3 to 6 feet tall.

Why I Love this Plant:  This plant is an interesting, tall perennial that the pollinators love. The bristly, round flowers look similar to thistles, and they are white to pale green. I like these cut in bouquets, and I’m going to see how they dry this year.

A Word to the Wise:  This plant self-seeds. If you don’t want it spreading, cut off the seedheads before the seeds drop. On the other hand, if you have a wild-flower style of garden, this would be a great plant to include. It would mix well with the perennial sunflowers such as Heliopsis and Helianthus, as well as with switch grass.

Another word to the wise: If you like your tall plants to be totally upright and vertical, maybe this isn’t the best choice for you. It leans, and any staking would look odd.

The flowers are round and white with a touch of sea-green. They are often covered with bees and other pollinators.

When I asked Google why this plant’s common name was rattlesnake master, here was the reply:  “Eryngium yuccifolium, also known as rattlesnake master, gets its name from the mistaken belief by early European settlers that Native Americans used the plant as an antidote for rattlesnake venom. Native Americans did use the plant for medicinal purposes, including using the sap to prevent snakebites during ceremonial rattlesnake handling.”

In this garden in Ohio, I loved how the Eryngium yuccifolium and the grasses (Calamagrostis ‘Karl Foerster’?) contrast with the sheared evergreen hedge behind. The rattlesnake master and the grass are wild, prairie style plants…the perfect thing to put in front of a sheared evergreen hedge.

In my garden I have this Eryngium planted in the back of my entry garden. I do not stake it or attempt to make it anything other than what it is.