Rattlesnake Master (Eryngium yuccifolium) 2x2x3" Pot

A.k.a. button snake-root. At the height of their bloom, flowers are absolutely alive with pollinators! A perfect native replacement for yucca, though rattlesnake master is actually in the carrot family. Flowers are small but long lasting, and their sturdy stalks mean seed heads remain long enough to give texture to plantings in the winter. Generally hardy and adaptable, and reseeds well in open soil.

Light: Full Sun

Soil Moisture: Wet Mesic, Mesic, Dry Mesic, Dry

Soil Type: Adaptable

Height: 3'-4'

Bloom Color: White

Bloom Time: Jul-Sep

Root Type: Taproot

Notable Wildlife Interactions: Flowers attract a wide variety of pollinators including bees, wasps, flies, butterflies, skippers, and beetles. Hosts the rare rattlesnake master borer moth. Rarely bothered by mammalian herbivores.

Notes: Following my text based research, this profile originally stated that rattlesnake master does not tolerate standing water. I have since repeatedly found them growing well in consistently wet conditions, including a wet glade in a prairie-side thicket absolutely chock full of rattlesnake master and foxglove penstemon that was, at the time of observation, visibly full of standing water. So. Rattlesnake master are very adaptable.

Rattlesnake master leaves were also used in pre-Colombian times to make cordage and for coarse weaving. They appear to have been a fairly common material used to make corded and woven sandals! The only reference I can find as to when to harvest the leaves suggested they be cut if fall after the leaves are dry. Further details have been elusive.