Solidago sempervirens
Solidago ptarmicoides
seaside goldenrod, verge d'or toujours verte
prairie goldenrod, upland white aster, verge-d'or faux-ptarmica, white flat-top goldenrod
1–10(–20+), erect or ascending, glabrous throughout or hairy in arrays.
1–20+, erect, slender, glabrous proximally, hispid distally.
rosettes present at flowering;
basal and proximal cauline tapering to long, winged petioles sheathing stems or nearly so, blades narrowly ovate to oblanceolate, 100–400 × 10–60 mm, thick or fleshy, entire, acute, glabrous;
mid to distal cauline usually numerous, sessile, blades lanceolate, 40–60 × 5–10 mm, reduced distally, thick or fleshy, bases sometimes subclasping, margins entire.
basal and proximal cauline persistent, subpetiolate to sessile, blades sometimes 3-nerved, linear to linear-lanceolate, 60–100 × 7–10 mm, stiff, flat, margins entire or subentire, faces glabrous or sparsely hairy;
mid to distal cauline sessile, blades linear oblanceolate to linear, 20–40 × 3–5 mm, reduced distally, margins entire.
2–3 mm, glabrous or sparsely hairy.
29–36.5 mm, strigillose;
bracteoles linear.
3–7 mm.
5–6 mm.
8–17;
laminae 5–6.2 × 0.4–0.6 mm.
10–20, usually white, rarely pale yellow (conspicuous);
laminae 7–7.3 × 1.4–1.6 mm.
10–22;
corollas 3–3.2 mm, lobes 0.5–1.2 mm.
30–36;
corollas 3.8–4.1 mm, lobes 0.5–0.7 mm.
in 3–4 series, unequal, lanceolate, margins ciliate, apices acute.
in 4–5 series, usually prominently 1-nerved, linear, strongly unequal, outer acute, inner acute to obtuse, glabrous.
20–500, secund, in paniculiform arrays, secund-pyramidal to broadly club-shaped, sometimes leafy proximally, at least proximal branches spreading-recurved, branches and peduncles bracteolate, bracteoles reduced distally.
1–25(–50), in corymbiform arrays.
(obconic) 1.1–1.5 mm, moderately strigose;
pappi 3.8–4 mm (slightly clavate).
(obconic) 1–1.5 mm (ribbed), glabrous;
pappi 3.4–4 mm (apically clavate).
= 18.
Solidago sempervirens
Solidago ptarmicoides
Subspecies 2 (2 in the flora).
Solidago sempervirens is common along the seacoast from the Gulf of St. Lawrence to central America and the northern West Indies. Introduced populations are sometimes very large near the Detroit River and Lake Erie in southwestern Ontario, eastern Michigan, and adjacent Ohio. A second disjunct group of populations occurs in Illinois and Indiana in the Chicago area at the southern end of Lake Michigan. Two mostly geographically separate subspecies can be recognized in the flora range. A race also occurs in the Azores and is undoubtedly introduced there [Solidago sempervirens var. azorica (Hochstetter ex Seubert) H. St. John]. Plants cultivated in European gardens have been labeled S. sempervirens var. viminea (Aiton) A. Gray.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
L. Brouillet and J. C. Semple (1981) summarized the morphologic, chemical, cytological, and hybridization data on Solidago ptarmicoides and concluded that, except for the white rays, it is a typical member of sect. Ptarmicoidei. The species hybridizes with S. rigida, S. ohioensis, S. riddellii, and perhaps other goldenrods. It is not known to hybridize with any species of aster (regardless of genus); the supposed Aster × Solidago hybrids are the basis of all reports of intergeneric hybrids in the literature. Horticultural hybrids involving S. ptarmicoides and other Solidago species have been treated as S. ×luteus (M. L. Green ex Dress) Brouillet & Semple (×Solidaster luteus M. L. Green ex Dress). Solidago ×bernardii B. Boivin [Oligoneuron ×bernardii (B. Boivin) G. L. Nesom] is the formal name applied to S. ptarmicoides × S. riddellii hybrids; those have cream rays. Solidago ×lutescens (Lindley ex de Candolle) B. Boivin [Diplopappus lutescens Lindley ex de Candolle; D. albus var. lutescens (Lindley ex de Candolle) Hooker ex Torrey & A. Gray; Aster lutescens (Lindley ex de Candolle) Hooker ex Torrey & A. Gray; A. ptarmicoides var. lutescens (Lindley ex de Candolle) A. Gray; Oligoneuron ×lutescens (Lindley ex de Candolle) G. L. Nesom] applies to hybrids between S. ptarmicoides and S. rigida or S. riddellii from the prairies; these also have cream colored rays.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
1. Involucres 4–7 mm, rays 12–17, disc florets ca. 17–22; Newfoundland to New Jersey, locally to Virginia | subsp. sempervirens |
1. Involucres 3–4 mm, rays 7–11, disc florets ca. 10–16; Massachusetts to Texas and southward | subsp. mexicana |
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