Despite its common name, prairie dock tends to prefer more glade-like habitat here in Missouri. This is a long-lived plant with large, spade-shaped leaves and yellow flowers. Bees visit for nectar and can be found nesting in and around prairie dock plants. Like the closely-related compass plant, the leaf surfaces face east and west. Feel the leaves on a hot, sunny day and they will feel like cool sandpaper. This is because of the tufts of tiny hairs covering the leaf surface that trap a layer of air.
Uses: Bees, birds, butterflies
Bloom time: July - October
Height: 24 to 36 inches
Space: 18 to 30 inches
Sun: Full sun to light shade
Moisture: Dry to average
Seed: Harvest September/October. We've germinated the seed without any pre-treatment, but we usually give it 6 to 8 weeks of cold moist stratification. The following seeding rates should deposit about 10 seeds per square foot.
- 1/8 ounce per packet
- 1,060 seeds per ounce
- 1 ounce per 100 square feet
