Thunderchild Flowering Crab vs Joe-Pye Weed - TreeTime.ca

Thunderchild Flowering Crab vs Joe-Pye Weed

Eutrochium maculatum

Malus x adstringens Thunderchild

NOT AVAILABLE THIS SEASON - MIGHT RETURN

COMING SOON

(new stock expected: fall of 2026)

Joe-Pye Weed
Thunderchild Flowering Crab

Joe-Pye Weed is a tall native perennial wildflower known for its clusters of fragrant pink flowers. Blooming from mid-summer to early fall, its long-lasting blooms attract a wide range of pollinators, including bees, butterflies, moths, and other beneficial insects. Adding to its ecological value, Joe-Pye Weed also serves as an important host plant for several species of butterflies and moths, and its seed heads provide food for small birds into the fall and winter.

Joe-Pye Weed is well suited to pollinator gardens, rain gardens, riparian zones and wetland plantings, as well as naturalization and restoration projects. It spreads through underground rhizomes to form small colonies and is generally easy to manage, though it may require additional care and maintenance in smaller urban yards and gardens. It is also resistant to deer, making it a good choice for gardens where deer are a concern.

Thunderchild Flowering Crab is a hybrid crab apple known for its attractive and fragrant dark pink blossoms and deep purple mature leaves.

Tree farmers will find this hybrid appealing as a pollinator for other apples, while home growers will enjoy the red pome's ability to attract flocks of Cedar Waxwings in the early spring.

This species is reportedly resistant to fireblight.

Joe-Pye Weed Quick Facts

Thunderchild Flowering Crab Quick Facts

Zone: 3a
Zone: 3a
Height: 1.8 m (6 ft)
Height: 5 m (15 ft)
Spread: 0.6 m (2.0 ft)
Spread: 4 m (12 ft)
Light: partial shade, full sun
Light: full sun
Moisture: normal, wet
Moisture: normal
Growth rate: fast
Growth rate: medium
Life span: short
Life span: medium
Growth form: upright, clump forming
Spreading: rhizomes - medium, seeds - low
Suckering: none


Foliage: dark purple leaves
Fall colour: dark red
Flowers: pink clusters
Flowers: dark pink blossoms
Bloom time: mid summer to early fall
Fruit: small red pomes that hang through the winter
Berries: small red pomes that hang through the winter
Hybrid: no
Hybrid: no
Catkins: no
Catkins: no


Native to: AB, BC, SK, MB, ON, QC, NS, NB, NL, PE
Other Names: joe pye weed, joe pyeweed, queen of the meadow, spotted joe pye, spotted joe pye weed, spotted joe-pye weed, spotted trumpet weed