Jan–MarApr–JunJul–SepOct–Dec
Planting
Days to maturity
Seasonal yields
Sow indoors · Direct sow · Transplant outdoors
← Explore Plants
Plant · P-973
Dogbane
Apocynum cannabinum
Dogbane is a colony-forming wetland perennial grown for its bark, which yields one of the strongest plant fibres in North America - twisted into cordage and twine by native peoples for centuries and still rated among the best bast fibres for strength. Bees and other pollinators swarm its flowers, though monarch butterflies that lay eggs on it are laying a trap: the caterpillars cannot survive on it. Every part of the plant is highly toxic if eaten, with a lethal dose small enough to matter for livestock even in dried hay, so it needs to be kept well clear of pasture and hayfields. Its horizontal rhizomes spread aggressively and root many feet down, which is exactly what makes repeat fibre harvests possible from one planting, but it needs a mowed or grazed margin to keep it from taking over the ground around it.
Record at a glance
Growing profile
- Sun
- Full Sun · Partial Sun
- USDA zone
- USDA 4–9
- Soil
- Sand
- Moisture
- Dry · Moderate
Vertical layer
Herbaceous- Soil pH
- 6.1–7.8
- Plant type
- Perennial
- Mature height
- 2–4 ft
- Mature spread
- 18–30 in
- Plant spacing
- 24–35 in
- Root type
- Rhizome
- Spread pattern
- Root
Keep exploring
Similar plants
Discover more plants with shared forest layers or growing conditions.
Adzuki Bean
Vigna angularis (Willd.) Ohwi & H.Ohashi
Adzuki is the odd one out among the beans in this group: a very hot summer is actively too hot for it, since heat above about 35C damages…
Herbaceous · USDA 3–11
African Eggplant
Solanum aethiopicum
African Eggplant, also called gboma or scarlet eggplant, is a West and Central African relative of eggplant that gives two harvests from one…
Herbaceous · USDA 8–12
Agrimony
Agrimonia eupatoria
Agrimony is a slender herbaceous perennial of sunny, disturbed ground across Europe and western Asia, grown mainly for the tannin-rich leaves…
Herbaceous · USDA 5–9
Alfalfa
Medicago sativa
Alfalfa is a deep-rooted perennial legume grown worldwide as one of the richest forage crops available, its taproot running six metres or…
Herbaceous · USDA 4–11
Alsike Clover
Trifolium hybridum
Alsike Clover fixes nitrogen in wet, acid ground too cold and heavy for red clover to thrive in, and its flowers keep bees working all season…
Herbaceous · USDA 5–9
Amaranth Greens
Amaranthus tricolor
Amaranth greens are one of the few leafy vegetables actually built for peak summer heat rather than one that just tolerates it - sown once…
Herbaceous · USDA 2–11
The deeper layer
Plan what comes next.
- Primary
- Locked ecological function
- Secondary
- Locked ecological function
- Byproduct
- Locked ecological function
Behind the record
- Locked research reference
- Locked research reference
- Locked research reference