Campuloclinium macrocephalum (pompom weed, "Ponpon'azami")

Japanese name: ポンポンアザミ
Scientific name: Campuloclinium macrocephalum

[Overview]
A perennial growing 1.3 m tall.
It has long, creeping, branching rhizomes and often grows in colonies.
The whole plant is covered with coarse hairs.
The stem is erect and branches in the upper part.
The leaves are simple and opposite, oblong, about 8 cm long and 2 cm wide, with serrated margins.
The leaf base runs down into a winged petiole.
Many pale reddish purple flower heads are borne in corymbs on the upper part of the stem.
The flower heads are about 1.5 cm long and 2.5 cm across, consist only of tubular florets, and the styles protrude out of the flower.
The fruit is an achene with a pappus.

[Cultivation]
Propagate from seed, by division, or by stem cuttings.
It prefers sunny soil that is well drained and moisture-retentive.
For plants in the ground, avoid places exposed to strong afternoon sun or prone to drying.
Because it spreads by extending underground stems, to keep it from spreading too much, make a frame underground or plant it in a large pot and then bury the pot.
Rainfall is sufficient unless sunny summer weather continues and the soil dries out.
Too much fertilizer makes it leggy and reduces flowering, so if base fertilizer is applied, nothing more is needed.
There are no particular pests or diseases.

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