Parthenium integrifolium (Wild Quinine) - Plugs

With a range from Minnesota to Massachusetts south to Mississippi and Georgia, Wild Quinine is most common in the Tallgrass Prairie region of the Midwest and on the Atlantic Coastal Plain in Virginia and North Carolina.

Wild Quinine grows to around 3 feet tall, depending on conditions.  It blooms in Midsummer from about June to August.  Wild quinine is an aster family species, evidenced by its composite flowers.  Similar to other Aster family plants, wild quinine flowers appear in flat-topped clusters.

Uses

Wild quinine is a good plant to include in mixed prairie plantings, as well as in native plant based perennial gardens.

The large basal leaves make a good contrast to finer-leaved grasses and perennials, and the white blooms help to tie plantings together.  The plants also grow only 2-3 feet tall, making it one of the shorter prairie plants.  Wild quinine has tough stems that don't arch over, making it good for the edge of a perennial border where lawn is mowed up to the edge.

Wild quinine is a good pollinator plant, attracting bees and butterflies.  Rabbits and deer avoid the plant, since the leaves are rough in texture and very bitter.

How to grow Wild Quinine

Wild quinine is a very easy-to-grow native wildflower - The plants are somewhat sensitive to transplanting, but this can be resolved with our SuperPlugs that are planted directly in the ground.

Plant wild quinine in average soil in full sun - Some shade is tolerated, but form will be better in sun.  The plants are very drought tolerant and can go weeks without rain.  Space 18 inches apart and plant in groups of at least 3 to 5 plants.