Pale Indian Plantain is a unique, towering but sturdy native wildflower with beautiful, bold foliage and creamy white, flat-topped clusters of flowers in midsummer. It grows in a variety of habitats from woodlands to savannas, prairies to streambanks. It prefers full or partial sun and rich, loamy soil or rocky, sandy soil. It is a very adaptable plant that is easy to grow and requires little to no maintenance. If desired, the flower stalk can be cut back to the basal foliage after blooming to get a second, shorter bloom. The thick, rigid stem easily bears the weight of the flowers without needing to be staked. The strongly upright growth habit makes this a striking vertical accent in any landscape. It tends to self-seed in optimal growing conditions which may be too aggressive for smaller gardens, but an asset for naturalizing in larger areas.
Sources:
The Midwestern Native Garden by Charlotte Adelman & Bernard L. Schwartz
Missouri Botanical Garden
Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
Illinois Wildflowers
NC State Extension
