Elegant Tarweed (Madia elegans)
Elegant Tarweed is a beautiful annual wildflower native to the Pacific Northwest. It is well loved by many beneficial insects including native bees, native flies, and native parasitic wasps. At the end of their growing season the seeds are relished by many songbirds including finches, juncos, pine siskins, quail, etc.
Elegant Tarweed is the star of garden in the early morning hours and glows as the sun rises! In response to the heat of the day Elegant Tarweed rolls it's flowers up tight to conserve water until evening when the flower petals once again unfurl. Elegant Tarweed has a sticky resinous coating on its leaves that smells like a citrusy-pineapple and the seeds it produces are edible. Elegant Tarweed is drought tolerant and can grow 5 feet tall or more making it a nice background garden plant for garden edges, fence lines, or anywhere a little wild is desired!
Each packet contains 100 seeds and germination instructions are included.
Elegant Tarweed at a glance
- Average growth dimensions - 1-5 ft tall x 1-2 ft wide
- Dormancy - Dies each Winter and will happily self sow! (leave the dead plant stocks until Spring for bees to nest in and birds to feed on the seeds)
- Plant type - Annual herb
- Sun - Full Sun
- Water - Low - rain water only
- Flowering time - May - November (if deadheaded and irrigated periodically)
- Flower color - Yellow, yellow with a red ring
- Soil preference - Highly adaptable