**Description:** A tall plant with candelabra-like spikes of tiny blue-violet flowers.
**Size:** 2 to 5 feet tall.
**Identification:** Features opposite, lance-shaped leaves with coarse teeth. Flowers bloom in a ring that moves up the spike over several weeks.
**Behavior:** Thrives in "wet feet" conditions and provides a mid-to-late summer nectar source for native bees.
**Habitat:** Common along the Allegheny River and silty margins of forest ponds.