Sanguisorba menziesii Wake Up

Sanguisorba menziesii 'Wake Up' is a particularly floriferous Alaskan burnet, selected for its purplish-pink spikes, which are longer, denser, and more downy than those of the botanical species. In the garden, its flexible inflorescences sway above a cushion of finely divided leaves throughout the summer. In moist to wet soil, it will accompany grasses and other meadow perennials. This variety also provides excellent cut flowers.

Sanguisorba menziesii belongs to the Rosaceae family, like roses or spiraeas. This species is known by the names Alaskan burnet, Alaskan great burnet, or sometimes Menzies' burnet. It is a deciduous, rhizomatous perennial: the entire above-ground part disappears in winter and regrows each spring from a fleshy crown. Its natural range covers the cool, marshy areas of Alaska, from the Pacific coast of Canada to the Olympic Peninsula in the state of Washington. It is a plant of peat moors, wet meadows, and marsh edges.

The cultivar 'Wake Up' is a horticultural selection of British origin, cultivated in gardens since at least the early 2000s. The plant forms a clump with an upright yet flexible habit. At maturity, when in flower, it reaches between 60 and 80 cm in height, sometimes up to 90 cm in rich soil, with a spread of 40 to 50 cm. Its foliage clump measures about twenty centimetres high. The leaves are compound, with numerous small, elliptical, and toothed, dark green leaflets, slightly tinged with blue or grey. The flower stems are thin, sturdy, and slightly reddish at the base of the spikes. The roots are rhizomatous and fleshy, but the plant is not invasive: the clump widens gradually but remains well-defined.
The flowering period extends from June to September. The flower buds, initially wine-red, open into cylindrical spikes resembling small bottle brushes, blending shades of dark red, old rose, and powdery pink. The numerous, very visible stamens give each spike a very light, feathery appearance. The flowers are numerous on each stem, forming a cloud of small coloured pom-poms that sway with the slightest breath of air. After flowering, the spikes slowly turn brown and remain decorative in late summer and early autumn. The fruits, small dry achenes, are almost unnoticed by the gardener.

Sanguisorba menziesii 'Wake Up' is a plant for naturalistic borders and flower meadows that pairs particularly well with the tresses of ornamental grasses. You can pair it with Panicum virgatum 'Shenandoah', whose foliage turns red in late summer, and Amsonia tabernaemontana var. salicifolia, with its pale blue flowers and very fine foliage. Veronicastrum virginicum 'Lavendelturm', topped with long lavender spikes, and Sanguisorba 'Pink Brushes', endowed with long, trailing, soft pink bottle brushes, will also be lovely companions.