Dotted Gayfeather

Liatris punctata

Dotted Gayfeather (Liatris punctata), also called Dotted Blazing Star, is a native perennial of the aster family whose stiff, leafy stems end in dense spikes of small rose-purple flower heads that open from the top down. It blooms in late summer, mostly in August, on dry, open prairie, rocky slopes and grassy pine openings throughout the Black Hills foothills and lower Hills.

Free photos from other sources

Dotted Gayfeather: Spike of rose-purple flower heads with long, thread-like styles — Liatris punctata NPS-1. Jim Pisarowicz (National Park Service), Public Domain. Get it at the source

Dotted Gayfeather: Clump of many purple flower spikes in dry grassland — Liatris punctata. Logan Stecker, CC0 1.0. Get it at the source

Dotted Gayfeather: Pink flower heads and sharp-pointed green bracts, close up — Liatris punctata. William Michael O'Boyle, CC BY 4.0, resized. Get it at the source

Dotted Gayfeather: Narrow leaf dotted with tiny resin glands — Liatris punctata (4990862223). Matt Lavin, CC BY-SA 2.0, resized. Get it at the source

Dotted Gayfeather: Clump of tan, fluffy seed spikes in fall — Liatris punctata. lejones417, CC BY-SA 4.0, resized. Get it at the source

Dotted Gayfeather: Dark ribbed seeds with feathery bristles, close up — Liatris punctata (4991470256). Matt Lavin, CC BY-SA 2.0, resized. Get it at the source

Quick facts
Family	Asteraceae · Aster
Status	Native perennial
Blooms	Late July into September, peaking in August
Height	15–85 cm (6–33 in)
Where	Dry, open prairie, rocky slopes and ridges, and grassy openings in ponderosa pine
Also called	Dotted Blazing Star, Blazing Star, Plains Gayfeather, Nebraska Blazing Star, Button Snakeroot, tȟatéte čhaŋnúŋǧa (Lakota)
Synonym	Lacinaria punctata, Liatris punctata var. nebraskana, Liatris densispicata, Liatris punctata var. coloradensis
Traditional use	Sitting Bull College's 1998 Culturally Important Plants of the Lakota says the pounded roots were eaten to improve the appetite and in times of famine, gathered in early spring before they turn woody.

Roots, seeds & germination

Root: A woody, corm-like crown sits on a very deep taproot. Prairie root studies cited by USDA found the roots fill the top 2.5 m (8 ft) of soil and sometimes reach 5 m (16 ft), which helps the plant stay green through drought.

Seed: Each head ripens 4–8 slender, ten-ribbed, dark achenes 6–8.5 mm (¼–⅓ in) long, each with a tuft of feathery tan bristles that carries it on the wind. They ripen from late summer into fall, when the heads turn brown.

Germination: The seed needs a cold, moist period to sprout reliably: SDSU recommends 60 days of cold, moist stratification or sowing in fall, and a Nebraska study cited by USDA got 96% germination after two weeks of moist chilling. Seedlings put their energy into roots first, so a midsummer seedling only 12 cm (5 in) tall may already have a taproot about 1 m (3 ft) long.

How do you identify Dotted Gayfeather?

Look for a tight clump of stiff stems, each topped by a dense spike of small, stalkless, rose-purple heads packed so closely they hide the stem. Each head is only 1–2 cm (½–¾ in) tall with 4–8 florets, and its green bracts overlap like shingles and end in sharp points. The many narrow, grass-like leaves, 1–5 mm wide, carry tiny resin dots you can see against the light. Rocky Mountain Blazing Star has fewer, much bigger and rounder heads, mostly on short stalks, with rounded bracts edged in papery purple. After bloom the spikes turn into tan, fluffy columns of seed that stand into fall.

When does it bloom?

Late July into September, peaking in August.

Where does it grow?

Dry, open, well-drained ground in full sun: mixed-grass prairie, rocky and gravelly slopes and ridges, roadsides and grassy openings in ponderosa pine, on granite, limestone and sandstone soils. It is common throughout the foothills and the lower and middle Hills. The 1986 Jewel Cave survey lists it, National Park Service lists record it at Wind Cave, Jewel Cave, Mount Rushmore and Devils Tower, and about 135 herbarium specimens come from the Black Hills area.