How to Grow Sneezeweed
If you suffer from allergies, you don’t have to worry about growing sneezeweed. Helenium autumnale-or sneezeweed-does not cause hayfever or irritate sinus passages. The common name is derived because its dried leaves were once used to make snuff; the botanical name refers to its fall blooming habit. Sneezeweed can grow over 39 to 60 inches tall and will form clumps more than 20 inches across. Flowers resemble a daisy and come in golden, orange-red, copper-red and some white. It's suitable for USDA zones 3 to 10. Does this Spark an idea?
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Things You'll Need
- Shovel
- Organic matter
- Sneezeweed plants
- Water
- Complete plant food
- Mulch
- Pesticide
- Pruning shears
Instructions
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1
Select the site for the sneezeweed. They need full sunlight all day long so make sure the site is never in the shade. They need soil that retains moisture. Dig up the site, remove rocks and other garden debris and mix in heavy amounts of organic matter several weeks before planting.
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2
Plant the sneezeweed in the spring. Dig a hole that is larger than the container. Remove the plant carefully from the container and put it in the hole. Fill the hole with soil and tamp down gently to remove air bubbles. Water to settle the soil. Mulch around the plant to help keep the soil moist. Space the plants 12 inches apart.
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Water sneezeweed regularly. Apply complete plant food when new growth appears in the spring. The only real problem is slugs and snails. They can damage new growth during damp weather. Pick them off or use a pesticide.
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Watch for the sneezeweed to bloom beginning in the mid-summer and continuing to early fall. Remove spent flower stems. As the plant dies down, cut off dead foliage; leave cut foliage on the ground as mulch.
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Propagate sneezeweed by division every 3 years in the spring or fall. Dig up the plant, divide and discard the oldest central section. Replant the new sections, spacing 12 inches apart. Give new growth regular watering through the growing season.
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Propagate sneezeweed from seeds, planted in the late winter or early spring. Cover with ¼-inch soil and tamp down gently to settle the seeds. Water gently so as not to disturb seeds.
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Tips & Warnings
Sneezeweed are beautiful cut flowers.
This plant can be invasive.
This plant attracts honeybees.
Allow the seedheads to dry on the plants; remove and collect seeds for planting the next season.
Sneezeweed may be toxic if ingested. Symptoms include salivation, elevated temperature and pulse, difficulty of breathing, vomiting, and convulsions. Keep children and animals away from sneezeweed.
