Fireweed: A Pollinator Powerhouse
Fireweed (Chamerion angustifolium) earns its place in any pollinator garden. Bees, butterflies, and hummingbirds work these pink-purple flower spikes from bottom to top as blooms open progressively up the stem. A single plant can produce 80,000 seeds, making it prolific once established.
Where Fireweed Is Native in the United States
Fireweed thrives in cold-temperate climates and rapidly colonizes disturbed areas after wildfires. Here's where it grows natively across the U.S.:
Pacific Northwest: Alaska, Washington, Oregon, northern California. Look for fireweed along roadsides, in clearings, and across recently burned areas from sea level to alpine zones.
Rocky Mountain States: Montana, Idaho, Wyoming, Colorado, northern New Mexico. Fireweed grows at high elevations in mountain meadows and along trails.
Northern Tier States: Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, and parts of the upper Midwest. Find it in northern forests and wetland edges.
Appalachian Mountains: High elevation areas in Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Virginia, North Carolina, and Tennessee support fireweed populations.
Fireweed. Anne Holmes, illustrator
For the Travel Bugs
Fireweed grows across the entire Northern Hemisphere in cold-temperate to arctic regions. You'll spot those distinctive tall spikes of pink-purple flowers throughout Canada (where it's the official flower of the Yukon Territory), across northern Europe, and throughout Asia. Hot springs in Iceland. Mountain meadows in Norway. Siberian forests. If you're traveling north or high, watch for fireweed.
Growing Fireweed
Fireweed prefers full sun and well-drained soil. It spreads both by seed and underground rhizomes, so give it space or plant it where you want it to naturalize. The plant blooms from June through September depending on elevation and latitude, providing late-season nectar when many other flowers have finished.
Not in fireweed's native range? Plant what grows natively in your region instead. Check your state's native plant society for alternatives that support local pollinators.
Get Fireweed Temporary Tattoo
Fireweed: A Pollinator Powerhouse
Fireweed (Chamerion angustifolium) earns its place in any pollinator garden. Bees, butterflies, and hummingbirds work these pink-purple flower spikes from bottom to top as blooms open progressively up the stem. A single plant can produce 80,000 seeds, making it prolific once established.
Where Fireweed Is Native in the United States
Fireweed thrives in cold-temperate climates and rapidly colonizes disturbed areas after wildfires. Here's where it grows natively across the U.S.:
Pacific Northwest: Alaska, Washington, Oregon, northern California. Look for fireweed along roadsides, in clearings, and across recently burned areas from sea level to alpine zones.
Rocky Mountain States: Montana, Idaho, Wyoming, Colorado, northern New Mexico. Fireweed grows at high elevations in mountain meadows and along trails.
Northern Tier States: Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, and parts of the upper Midwest. Find it in northern forests and wetland edges.
Appalachian Mountains: High elevation areas in Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Virginia, North Carolina, and Tennessee support fireweed populations.
Fireweed. Anne Holmes, illustrator
For the Travel Bugs
Fireweed grows across the entire Northern Hemisphere in cold-temperate to arctic regions. You'll spot those distinctive tall spikes of pink-purple flowers throughout Canada (where it's the official flower of the Yukon Territory), across northern Europe, and throughout Asia. Hot springs in Iceland. Mountain meadows in Norway. Siberian forests. If you're traveling north or high, watch for fireweed.
Growing Fireweed
Fireweed prefers full sun and well-drained soil. It spreads both by seed and underground rhizomes, so give it space or plant it where you want it to naturalize. The plant blooms from June through September depending on elevation and latitude, providing late-season nectar when many other flowers have finished.
Not in fireweed's native range? Plant what grows natively in your region instead. Check your state's native plant society for alternatives that support local pollinators.
Get Fireweed Temporary Tattoo