Eryngium yuccifolium (Rattlesnake Master)

Rattlesnake Master blooms from June until September and the flowers have a sweet honey like scent. The scent attracts many beneficial insects. Some of these include; native long-tongued bees, short-tongued bees, wasps, flies, butterflies, skippers, moths, beetles, and for a lack of a better name, a variety of plant bugs. Rattlesnake Master is a host plant for the Swallowtail butterfly and in particular the Black Swallowtail .

Rattlesnake Master will grow from 2-5 ft tall on a stiff erect stem that is unbranched except at the top giving it a striking vertical look. The leaves wrap around the stem and are long and thin with prickly edges that resemble yuccas.

It grows well on wet or dry mesic prairie soil. It is generally found in wet or dry prairies and open woods.

AT A GLANCE