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| ## rattlesnake master {#rattlesnake-master .Title-Header}             |
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| *Eryngium yuccifolium* Michx.                                         |
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| Plant Symbol = ERYU                                                   |
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Contributed by: USDA NRCS Elsberry Plant Materials Center

##### 

##### Alternate Names {#alternate-names .Header-3}

Button eryngo

##### Uses {#uses .Header-3}

Rattlesnake master can be used for roadside plantings, prairie
restoration, prairie landscaping, wildlife cover, and also in wildflower
gardens because of its attractive appearance.

##### Status {#status .Header-3}

Please consult the PLANTS Web site and your State Department of Natural
Resources for this plant's current status (e.g. threatened or endangered
species, state noxious status, and wetland indicator values).

##### Description {#description .Header-3}

![Color image of Rattlesnake Master (Eryngium
yuccifolium)](media/image2.jpeg){width="2.0291338582677168in"
height="3.043700787401575in"}Rattlesnake master is a warm-season
perennial native forb which grows well on wet or dry mesic prairie soil.
Plants grow 2 to 6 feet tall from a short, thick rootstock. The bluish
green basal leaves are up to 3 feet long and up to 1½ inches wide. The
leaves along the stem are much shorter, but they may be as wide as the
basal leaves. All the leaves are thick and parallel veined and have soft
or weak prickles spaced far apart along the edges. The leaf bases clasp
the single, erect stem. Flower heads are on stout peduncles at the tip
of the stem. Each nearly spherical flower head is from 1/2 to 1 inch in
diameter and is made up of many small flowers. Whitish bracts stick out
sharply from the flowers, which gives the flower head a rough, prickly
feel and appearance. The heads have a honey-like odor and are in bloom
June to September. Individual fruits, which mature in the flower head,
are less than 1/10 inch long. The root of rattlesnake master has been
used medicinally by American Indians and pioneers. *Eryngium* is Greek
for "prickly plant" and *yuccifolium* is Greek for "yucca leaves."

##### Adaptation and Distribution {#adaptation-and-distribution .Header-3}

Rattlesnake master is found generally in wet or dry prairies and open
woods in the southeast US, north to Virginia, and throughout the Midwest
to Minnesota, Kansas and Texas.

For a current distribution map, please consult the Plant Profile page
for this species on the PLANTS Website.

##### Establishment {#establishment .Header-3}

Prepare a clean weed free seedbed by disking and harrowing or using
chemical weed control. Firm the seedbed by cultipacking. Seedbed should
be firm enough to allow seed to be planted ¼ inch deep. For prairie
restoration or diverse plantings for wildlife, rattlesnake master can be
incorporated into seed mixes at a rate of 2 oz pure live seed/ac (there
are 177,700 clean seeds in one pound of seed). Use stratified seed for
spring planting (May to June), and unstratified seed for a fall dormant
seeding (November to March). Apply no fertilizer the establishment year
unless soil test indicates a severe deficiency of potassium and/or
phosphorus. Use no nitrogen during the establishment year as this can
encourage weed competition.

Transplants planted in spring or fall can also be used for establishing
rattlesnake master on permanent sites.

##### Management {#management .Header-3}

Reduce weed competition by mowing or using approved herbicides. Burning
may be appropriate where plant vigor declines or where invader species
threaten native mix stands.

##### Pests and Potential Problems {#pests-and-potential-problems .Header-3}

Lodging has been noted when growing rattlesnake master in a monoculture
planting.

##### Environmental Concerns {#environmental-concerns .Header-3}

Rattlesnake master is not considered weedy or an invasive species and
has not been noted spreading to adjoining areas. Seedlings have not been
noted spreading from original plantings, or if they do spread, the rate
of spread is not alarming. Rattlesnake master is self-pollinated.

##### Cultivars, Improved, and Selected Materials (and area of origin) {#cultivars-improved-and-selected-materials-and-area-of-origin .Header-3}

Three source-identified composites of rattlesnake master from northern,
central, and southern Iowa have been released by the Elsberry, Missouri
Plant Materials Center.

##### Prepared By & Species Coordinators:  {#prepared-by-species-coordinators .Header-3}

*Jimmy Henry*, Manager

*Steven Bruckerhoff*, Conservation Agronomist

Elsberry Plant Materials Center, Elsberry, Missouri

##### 

##### Edited: 06Feb2002 JLK; 06jun06 jsp {#edited-06feb2002-jlk-06jun06-jsp .Header-4}

For more information about this and other plants, please contact your
local NRCS field office or Conservation District, and visit the PLANTS
Web site\<[http://plants.usda.gov](http://plants.usda.gov/)\> or the
Plant Materials Program Web site
\<[http://Plant-Materials.nrcs.usda.gov](http://Plant-Materials.nrcs.usda.gov/)\>

*The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) prohibits discrimination in
all its programs and activities on the basis of race, color, national
origin, sex, religion, age, disability, political beliefs, sexual
orientation, and marital or family status. (Not all prohibited bases
apply to all programs.) Persons with disabilities who require
alternative means for communication of program information (Braille,
large print, audiotape, etc.) should contact USDA\'s [TARGET
Center](http://www.usda.gov/oo/target.htm) at 202-720-2600 (voice and
TDD).*

*To file a complaint of discrimination write USDA, Director, Office of
Civil Rights, Room 326-W, Whitten Building, 14th and Independence
Avenue, SW, Washington, DC 20250-9410 or call 202-720-5964 (voice or
TDD). USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer.*

*Read about [Civil Rights at the Natural Resources Convervation
Service](http://www.nrcs.usda.gov/about/civilrights/).*