@FrozeBudd_z3/4 is our resident expert on all things "Pye Weed" :),

https://www.houzz.com/discussions/5948326/why-i-love-joe-pye-weed-baby-joe#27910895

I have only "Baby Joe" (4 feet this year) and "Gateway" (6 feet this year)

My stand of ”Little Joe” in consistently moist soil easily gets to 6 feet tall. Another clump in a drier spot usually maxes out around 3.5-4 feet.

Yes, 'Little Joe' is not so little especially when grown in moist soils. I removed many specimens of 'Baby Joe' for enthusiastically outgrowing their bounds. A drier leaner site will indeed impact height and overall vigor, but these plants really perform best in fertile soils with adequate moisture. 'Ruby' is the one to go with when wanting a smaller more compact plant.

I have "Ruby" on my to buy list for 2024.

Is the "Ruby" you speak of the same as "Eupohoria Ruby"? That one may be too short, if gets the height advertised 24-32". More like 4-5' foot is what I'm looking for. I thinned my stand of "Phantom", which would be about the perfect height, but that dusty mauve would look horrid in the spot I need something for so I tossed the divisions.

Yes, correct, it's the same 'Ruby', I measured my plant at 44 inches and expect it shall top out a bit taller as it further matures.

Rouge, I'm sure you'll enjoy 'Ruby' as much as I do !! :)

I removed 'Phantom' because of its uninspiring coloring,

"I removed 'Phantom' because of its uninspiring coloring,"

"Uninspiring" is a good way to sum it up, but you know, I do very much like it in the particular spot I have it, it just works there, and on its own it looks good, it caught my eye when I saw it in bloom at the nursery years ago. It just doesn't play well with other colors.

Yes, if it works in that one particular setting then that's all that matters! :)

For anyone interested, Joe Pye weed is exceedingly easy to grow from seed and first year flowering from an early sowing. Surface sow and stratify and the things germinate and grow like weeds!