Perennial of the Month-- August 2001
Common name: Bugbane
Family: Ranunculaceae, Buttercup
Height x width: 4-7' x 2-3', shorter in sun and than other purple foliage cultivars
Growth rate: moderate to slow (3-4 years before flowering)
Foliage: divided into 3 segments 3 times (ternately compound), blackish and noteworthy as darkest of any purple foliage cultivar; dark purple stems
Flowers: long racemes of white, late summer; fragrant
Hardiness: zones 3-7
Soil: moist, acidic preferred (as in woodlands)
Light: shade to part shade zone 6 and warmer, full sun north with sufficient moisture
Pests and problems: few
Landscape habit, uses: woodland, back of border, native planting; nice contrast with yellow foliage as of variegated meadowsweet, or white foliage of artemisias; good choice for late summer bloom, and a choice plant for accent or specimen
Other interest: when named by Linnaeus in 1750 the species foetidus was ground into powder and stuffed into mattresses and pillows to drive away (Latin fugo) bugs (Latin cimex); much confusion in the nomenclature of this genus, this cultivar and similar ones often listed in ramosa yet other references putting them in racemosa
Other culture: performs best in cooler zones
Propagation: stratified seed germinate erratically, hard to divide mature (at least 3 years old) plants
Sources:
Planthaven retailers. Shady
Oaks (MN), Greer Gardens (OR), Wayside Gardens (SC) and other specialty
perennial nurseries and retailers