Perennial herb. Conoclinium coelestinum aka eupatorium coelestinum (Aster Family). Bloom time July-Nov. Sow seeds in fall or provide cold stratification.

It isn't native to my side of the country, but Lady Bird Johnson wildflower site remarks:

"Mistflower grows to 3 feet high, but often lower, with leaves opposite, somewhat triangular in shape, and bluntly toothed. At the top of the plant the branches, with their short-stemmed clusters of flowers, form an almost flat top. Disk flowers are bright blue or violet, about 1/4 inch long. There are no ray flowers.

Blue Mistflower attracts bees and butterflies. However, this wildflower spreads quickly and can become a pest."

Thanks! I have never seen it wild before and saw a bunch of it lastweekend in an unmowed yard in rural Ross county. It doesn't look like it's a pest - there were just clumps here and there. We'll see what happens. It looks like the annuals in the store!

yep...you are correct...a little more research yields the same result. This is a very cool flower.

Hi! I'm new to winter sowing :)

I have this flower blooming right now. Tell me how to pass it along, and I'd be happy to share the seeds or dig a bit up for folks. Mine's quite blue (pale-medium) and definitely perennial.

Meredith,
Wait until the flowers go completely brown and dry. Then clip them off into a paper bag and shake well until the seeds separate from the stem. I have never collected these particular seeds, but I'm sure some one who has can step in and let us know if there are any tricks to gathering these seeds. If you do succeed in saving seed, I'd be interesting in trading. Let us know if we can answer any questions, and thanks for chiming in.

Martha

Thank you, Martha! I'll be watching for the blooms to fade.

With the exception of Forget-me-nots, and that Wild ageratum, I don't have any blues in my flowerbeds..Last year or this year, can't remember which now, I WS the chinese FMN..and that stuff spread like wildfire and I ripped it up..Wild Ageraturm..I have no idea where it came from a few year back but it pops back up every year and fills in my one bed nicely with light blue color in one area. I ripped it all out about a month ago and I'll bet it will be back next Summer. Sometimes I am convinced either the birds drop the seeds or if you get a plant from a friend in a pot, the seeds might be in their soil. Mine is next to some tall garden phlox that I transplanted from a friend that has beautiful gardens but I've never seen this plant in her gardens so I'm guessing the birds dropped the seeds or could it be that the seeds were buried deep inside some original soil here from previous owner even though we've lived here 7 yrs.? It's like mint from previous owner keeps popping up from time to time and I rip it out but it comes right back..I have the raspberry wine bee balm and knowing now that it is in same mint family I wonder if what I rip up when I see it is really bee balm but the leaves are different. MY raspberry wine didn't do that great this summer in all the 100 degree heat, now it's blooming but doesn't have the height on it like it did last year. Earlier in the spring, I gave some away, could it be rebelling against being shovel prunned?

Don't have anything against blue flowers, it just happens that I haven't chosen anything in the blues, but plan to buy some blue/purple salvia next Spring and plant. Oh, I did buy Emerald blue creeping phlox but that is in my back beds..will have to buy some blue for the front next spring.