Chamaenerion angustifolium (also Epilobium angustifolium)
Fireweed is a tall northern perennial associated with roadsides, clearings, river edges, and recently burned ground. Its name comes from its habit of colonizing burned-over areas, and in Maine it is a familiar midsummer plant with a tall spike of deep pink flowers.12
Young shoots, leaves, unopened buds, and flowers all appear in northern food traditions, but the plant changes quickly as it matures: older foliage becomes tougher and more bitter. The first shoots are often compared with asparagus, while the young leaves are mild enough for greens or a light tea. Once flowering is well underway, older blossoms become bitter, so the edible window is part of the ingredient’s character rather than a minor harvest detail.3
Its flowers open progressively up the stem rather than all at once, moving upward as the season advances. Maine’s flowering period is generally July into August, and the flowers draw bumblebees, hummingbirds, and hummingbird moths.1 Its extensive root system helps it recolonize disturbed ground, but it can also spread aggressively where it is cultivated.4
Footnotes
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University of Maine Cooperative Extension, “Fireweed,” accessed July 17, 2026. ↩ ↩2
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University of Maine Cooperative Extension, “Fireweed,” updated 2019. ↩
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University of Alaska Fairbanks Cooperative Extension Service, “Fireweed,” accessed July 17, 2026. ↩
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University of Maine Cooperative Extension, “What plant can I use to replace Dame’s Rocket?,” 2024. ↩