Moerheim Beauty Sneezeweed

Helenium 'Moerheim Beauty'

flower

Moerheim Beauty is a classic sneezeweed (Helenium), a moisture-loving native hybrid that lights up the late-summer and fall border with masses of warm coppery-red daisies around raised gold-brown button centers, fading attractively as they age. Despite the unfortunate common name it does not cause sneezing - it was once used in snuff, hence the name, but its pollen is insect-carried, not airborne. Reaching 2 to 3 ft, it is a strong, upright, long-blooming plant whose flowers are alive with bees and butterflies just when the garden needs late-season fuel.

✅ Plant alongside

Good neighbors that attract beneficial insects or deter pests

• New England Aster — Fall partner that feeds the same late bees and butterflies in moist soil
• Fireworks Goldenrod — Gold sprays beside the coppery daisies, both peaking in the late-season pollinator window
• Joe Pye Weed — Tall moisture-lover that shares the damp border and butterfly traffic
• Black-Eyed Susan — Overlapping warm-toned daisies extending the late-summer nectar supply

🛡️ Pest & disease prevention

Proactive ways to stop trouble before it starts — tap a name with an arrow for its full guide

• Powdery mildew →

  Keep soil moist (drought stress invites it), give airflow with proper spacing, and water at the base

• Leaf spot →

  Space for air circulation and remove affected lower leaves in humid weather

• Slugs and snails →

  Protect new spring growth with grit or traps in damp conditions

🌸 Blooms & cutting

Sneezeweed is a fine, long-lasting cut flower for late-summer arrangements - cut when the daisies are freshly open, in the cool morning. In the garden, deadhead spent blooms to prolong the show and keep pollinators fed, and consider the late-spring pinch for sturdier plants. Leave some late seed heads for birds, and cut the plant back in spring rather than fall.

🥗 Nutrition & benefits

Sneezeweed is a valuable late-season pollinator plant - its daisy flowers offer open, easy access to a wide range of bees, butterflies, and other beneficial insects from late summer into fall, helping bridge the gap when many summer flowers have faded. Contrary to the name, it is not a hay-fever plant; its pollen is carried by insects, not the wind.

⚠️ Toxicity & safety

Sneezeweed is toxic if eaten in quantity - the flowers, leaves, and seeds contain sesquiterpene lactones that can cause salivation, vomiting, and other digestive upset in people, pets, and grazing livestock, and the foliage can cause skin irritation in sensitive people. It is safe to grow and handle normally; just keep pets and livestock from grazing on it and wear gloves if your skin is sensitive.