The tall, regal stalks of this perennial are crowned with hundreds of tiny, pink buds that bloom from the bottom up, attracting various species of bees, beetles, and flies. The stunning, wind-tossed plumes of cotton candy-pink buds and fluff tower majestically over nearby grasses and perennials for three weeks between June and August. The deeply lobed, light green leaves are nearly as striking as the flowers, with some up to 2 feet long. Also known as pride of the meadow, lady of the meadow, meadowsweet, and prairie dropwort, queen-of-the-prairie is usually found in moist prairies or meadows and is an indicator of high-quality habitats. Perhaps due to the scarcity of wet prairies in our state, it's considered uncommon in Ohio, appearing mostly in westcentral Ohio with a few scattered areas in the northeast.
Queen-of-the-prairie does best in moist or wet conditions and full sun. It may appreciate a little shade in hot, dry summers when leaves tend to become scorched, but the flower stems tend to lean when not in full sun. When the plant is in part shade, it won't require as much moisture. It tolerates clay and poorly drained soils, but it's intolerant of drought. The flowers are beautiful even when they dry, so there's no need to deadhead. This is a low-maintenance plant that deer and other herbivores tend to ignore.
A similar plant is the introduced Queen of the Meadow, F. ulmaria, which has white flowers, a leaf with less deeply lobed leaflets, and a seed that is twisted rather than straight. Both species are members of the family Rosaceae. Filipendula is from the Latin filum for "thread" and pendulus for "hanging," referring to how the small root tubers are strung together by fibrous roots in the species F. vulgaris, which is the type species for the genus and the only species which has the tubers. Rubra is Latin for "red" (see Friends of Eloise Butler below).
Native habitats include moist black-soil prairies, moist sand prairies, moist meadows along rivers in woodland areas, shrubby fens, and wet areas in or around seeps and springs. Perfect for naturalizing wet, sunny areas. Use in back of perennial borders/gardens, in rain or bog gardens, as an accent plant, or along edges of streams and ponds.
Plant Characteristics:
Grows 4-8' tall and 3-4' wide.
Prefers full sun but tolerates part shade.
Prefers rich and wet or moist soils; prefers average soils when sited in part shade. Tolerates clay soils.
Large panicles bloom early to mid-summer for about 3 weeks. Individual flowers are about 1/3" wide, consisting of 5 pink petals and many long, white stamens with pink anthers. They give way to cylindrical, smooth, straight, reddish fruits 1/4-1/2" wide.
Flowering stems have several widely spaced leaves, up to a foot in length. There are usually many non-flowering shoots consisting of a basal leaf rising from the root and up to 2 feet long.
Alternate compound leaves are up to 2' long with 1-7 palmate leaflets up to 6" long. They become smaller as they ascend the smooth, reddish stem. Leaflets have 2-5 cleft lobes and coarsely serrated margins.
Spreads by rhizomes and seeds. Forms colonies in moist conditions.
Reproductive System: The species is hermaphrodite (has both male and female organs) and is self-fertile.
Wildlife Value:
Many species of bees collect pollen from the flowers and probably are the most important pollinators. Beetles and flies feed on the pollen. Wasps and butterflies may land on the flowers looking for nectar, but the flowers only produce pollen.
Medicinal, Edible, and Other Uses:
The Meskwaki used the plant as a source of important medicine for heart ailments, as well as a love potion.
Resources:
Friends of Eloise Butler: https://friendsofeloisebutler.org/pages/plants/queenprairie.html).
Gardenia.net: https://www.gardenia.net/plant/filipendula-rubra
Go Botany!: https://gobotany.nativeplanttrust.org/species/filipendula/rubra/#:~:text=Filipendula%20rubra%20%E2%80%94%20prairie%20dropwort%2C%20queen%2Dof%2Dthe%2Dprairie
Illinois Wildflowers: https://www.illinoiswildflowers.info/wetland/plants/pr_queen.htm
Ohio Division of Wildlife: https://dam.assets.ohio.gov/image/upload/ohiodnr.gov/documents/wildlife/backyard-wildlife/Pub5530_WetlandPlantsWEB_R1221.pdf