Eupatorium fortunei ("Kobanofujibakama")

Japanese name: コバノフジバカマ （小葉藤袴）
Scientific name: Eupatorium fortunei

[Overview]
A perennial 0.4–1 m tall.
It has creeping rhizomes.
The stem is green, often tinged with reddish purple, erect, and branches in the upper part.
The leaves are opposite, 5–10 cm long, and either deeply 3-lobed or divided into 3 segments so that they look like 3 leaflets.
The lobes are narrowly elliptic to elliptic-lanceolate.
The leaf margins are serrate.
The petioles are short.
Many reddish purple flower heads are borne in corymbs at the top of the stem.
The branches of the inflorescence ascend obliquely and are tinged with red.
The flower heads consist only of tubular flowers, and the styles protrude out of the flowers.
The fruit is an achene with a white pappus.
It closely resembles Fujibakama, but can be distinguished by the following points: the leaves in the upper part of the stem are also lobed, the leaves are somewhat smaller and thinner with narrower lobes, the flower color is often darker, and the branches of the inflorescence ascend at a steep angle and are tinged with red.

[Cultivation]
Propagate from seed, by division, or by stem cuttings.
It prefers a sunny site with soil that is well drained and retains water well.
When planting in the ground, avoid places exposed to strong afternoon sun or places that become dry.
Take care not to let it run out of water; for potted plants, water thoroughly when the soil surface dries, and for plants in the ground, rainfall is sufficient unless summer brings a long spell of sunny weather and the soil becomes dry.
Too much fertilizer makes the plant leggy and reduces flowering, so no fertilizer is particularly needed if basal fertilizer is applied, but for potted plants diluted liquid fertilizer may be given in spring and autumn.
There are no particular pests or diseases.

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