Solidago hispida
Solidago tarda
hairy goldenrod, verge d'or hispide
1(–5), erect, simple, glabrous or moderately to densely hispido-villous, sometimes hairs appressed.
1–5+, glabrous, sparsely strigose in arrays.
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 petiolate;
blades broadly elliptic to ovate, 100–350 × 60–120 mm (including petioles), bases truncate to obtuse, apices acute to acuminate, margins sharply serrate, glabrous;
distal cauline blades spreading to ascending, linear-elliptic, 30–50 × 6–15 mm.
1.5–2.5 mm, hispido-villous to canescent.
1.5–3 mm, glabrate to moderately short hispido-strigose, bracteoles 1–5, linear-lanceolate grading into phyllaries.
campanulate, 4–6 mm.
campanulate, (4.5–)5–7 mm (much exceeded by pappi).
6–14;
laminae 1.5–4.5 × 0.5–1 mm.
4–9;
laminae 4–5 × 1.5–2.5 mm.
6–12;
corollas 3–4.5 mm, lobes 0.6–1.2 mm.
9–11;
corollas 4–5 mm, lobes ca. 1.5 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.
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.
25–50+, in elongate, paniculiform arrays, proximal branches recurved-secund, sometimes elongate.
(narrowly obconic) 1–2.5 mm, glabrous;
pappi 2.5–4 mm (sometimes distinctly clavate).
(brown, ribs dark brown) 3 mm, sparsely short-strigose;
pappi 3–4 mm.
= 18.
= 54.
Solidago hispida
Solidago tarda
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 tarda requires a more xeric environment than S. arguta; it is found mostly on coastal plains. A. Cronquist (1980, citing G. H. Morton, pers. comm.) noted that some plants from northern Florida and southern Georgia had narrower, basally more tapering proximal leaves; some of those plants were tetraploid. The proper taxonomic status of those plants is uncertain.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
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