Solidago hispida
Solidago pulchra
hairy goldenrod, verge d'or hispide
Carolina goldenrod
1(–5), erect, simple, glabrous or moderately to densely hispido-villous, sometimes hairs appressed.
1, erect, slender.
basal and proximal cauline tapering to winged petioles, blades broadly oblanceolate to obovate or elliptic, 35–200 (including petioles) × 15–60 mm, margins serrate or crenate, apices acute, faces sparsely to densely hispido-villous, rarely glabrous;
mid and distal cauline sessile, blades elliptic, 15–30 × 5–7 mm, rapidly reduced distally, margins entire.
basal tufted, tapering, petiolate, petioles 20–100 mm, blades oblanceolate or elliptic, 30–120 (including petiole) × 5–15 mm, obtuse to rounded;
cauline sessile, blades oblanceolate to linear-lanceolate, 5–80 × 4–1.3 mm, abruptly reduced proximally, becoming bractlike proximal to arrays.
1.5–2.5 mm, hispido-villous to canescent.
2–25 mm;
bracteoles crowded, linear, 1–2 mm, grading into phyllaries.
campanulate, 4–6 mm.
broadly campanulate, 3.5–5 mm.
6–14;
laminae 1.5–4.5 × 0.5–1 mm.
6–14;
laminae 2–3 × 1–2 mm.
6–12;
corollas 3–4.5 mm, lobes 0.6–1.2 mm.
mostly 12–30;
corollas 3.5–4 mm, lobes 0.5–0.75 mm.
in 3–4 series, appressed, strongly unequal, midribs and tips conspicuously green, margins white, scarious, apices obtuse, glabrous or moderately strigose.
in 3–4 series, linear-lanceolate, strongly unequal, acute to slightly acuminate or cuspidate, glabrous.
8–250+ in usually wand-paniculiform arrays of short axillary and terminal racemiform, non-secund clusters, sometimes proximal branches elongated, ascending and bearing short axillary and terminal racemiform clusters.
5–20(–50), in slender racemiform or paniculiform arrays, sometimes secund and apically recurved, more often erect and not secund, sometimes compact and somewhat rounded to only slightly elongate.
(narrowly obconic) 1–2.5 mm, glabrous;
pappi 2.5–4 mm (sometimes distinctly clavate).
1.5–2 mm, sparsely finely strigose;
pappi (basally broader and flattened, fused to varying lengths) 3–4 mm (somewhat clavate).
= 18.
= 36.
Solidago hispida
Solidago pulchra
Ray floret color can fade with time, both in the field and on dried specimens, making it difficult to distinguish Solidago hispida from S. bicolor, in which it has sometimes been included. The latter tends to have slightly broader phyllaries and more obviously clavate pappus bristles. The two co-occur in some populations but do not appear to form hybrid swarms with a range in ray corolla color. Three varieties have been described on the basis of growth and pubescence features and are sometimes recognized. These may represent only extremes in continua of variation. Variety lanata has densely villous stems and leaves; such plants occur scattered through much of the range of the species. Two glabrous-stemmed varieties have been described; plants of var. tonsa are relatively small and were first described from Newfoundland; var. huronensis includes relatively tall glabrous plants found growing in sand dunes along the shore of Lake Huron in Michigan and Ontario. The latter plants have been treated as var. tonsa but the name is misapplied. Other varietal names are based on minor variations.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Solidago pulchra is a distinct species, not easily confused once seen in the field. It is known only from Brunswick, Pender, and Onslow counties, where it occurs in scattered populations of few to numerous individuals. The basally fused and flattened pappus bristles are very unusual in the genus. Occurrence of the species in South Carolina is unconfirmed.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
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