Queen of the Prairie, Filipendula rubra (Hill), wildflowers of the Eloise Butler Wildflower Garden

Queen of the Prairie is an erect perennial growing from 3 to 6 feet high on an unbranched stem. The stem can be reddish. Leaves are compound, having up to 7 leaflets arranged along a reddish leaf stem and each leaflet has from 2 to 5 deeply cleft lobes. Flowers occur in an inflorescence that stands well above the foliage, and has pink flowers and buds. The inflorescence is a tightly branched panicle and on each panicle branch the flowers open from top to bottom. Flowers are 5-parted, pink with long white stamens and pink anthers. They are not fragrant, have no nectar, but provide pollen for pollinators. They mature in small red fruits that are smooth and straight as opposed to F. ulamaria (Queen of the Meadow) where the fruits are smooth and have a spiral. The plants habitat is from wet to moist but in full or at least partial sun. It grows from rhizomes which will form colonies under the correct moist conditions. The Scientific name of Filipendula is from the Latin filum for "thread" and pendulus for "hanging," referring to how the small tubers are strung together by fibrous roots of the species after which the plant was named. The species name rubra is Latin for" red".

	Plants of the Eloise Butler Wildflower Garden
	Common Name	Scientific Name	Plant Family	Garden Location	Prime Season
	Queen of the Prairie	Filipendula rubra (Hill)	Rose (Rosaceae)	Upland	Early to Late Summer, before August.
Other names and notes	Queen of the Prairie is an erect perennial growing from 3 to 6 feet high on an unbranched stem. The stem can be reddish. Leaves are compound, having up to 7 leaflets arranged along a reddish leaf stem and each leaflet has from 2 to 5 deeply cleft lobes. Flowers occur in an inflorescence that stands well above the foliage, and has pink flowers and buds. The inflorescence is a tightly branched panicle and on each panicle branch the flowers open from top to bottom. Flowers are 5-parted, pink with long white stamens and pink anthers. They are not fragrant, have no nectar, but provide pollen for pollinators. They mature in small red fruits that are smooth and straight as opposed to F. ulamaria (Queen of the Meadow) where the fruits are smooth and have a spiral. The plants habitat is from wet to moist but in full or at least partial sun. It grows from rhizomes which will form colonies under the correct moist conditions. The Scientific name of Filipendula is from the Latin filum for "thread" and pendulus for "hanging," referring to how the small tubers are strung together by fibrous roots of the species after which the plant was named. The species name rubra is Latin for" red".