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Tall plants topped by delicate-looking clusters of pale pink flowers. Also known simply as sweet Joe-Pye weed. It has whorled leaves and cylindrical flowers.
There are various stories about the identity of the Joe Pye for whom the plant is named, but they all agree that he was a Native American medicine man. According to stories, he befriended European settlers in New England in the 17th or 18th century, using the weed that now bears his name to treat typhoid fever. (According to one story related by Jack Sanders, the European settlers responded to his kindness in the usual way — by chasing him off his own land.)
This variety of Joe-Pye weed grows abundantly in Fred Rose Park. I think it was planted there as part of the lakefront stabilization project.
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