Solidago speciosa |
Solidago nana |
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noble goldenrod, showy goldenrod |
baby goldenrod, dwarf goldenrod |
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Habit | Plants (30–)50–200 cm; caudices stout, woody. | Plants 10-50 cm; rhizomes stout or caudices branching. | ||||||||
Stems | 1(–5), erect, glabrous proximally to strigillose in arrays. |
1–6, decumbent to ascending, finely and densely puberulent. |
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Leaves | basal and proximal cauline (sometimes withering by flowering) tapering to winged petioles, blades lanceolate to ovate-elliptic, 50–300 (including petiole) × 12–80 mm (sometimes firm), margins sharply serrate to crenate or entire, faces glabrate to sparsely strigillose; mid to distal cauline sessile, blades narrowly ovate to lanceolate or elliptic, 25–90 × 5–30 mm, gradually reduced distally, margins serrulate to entire (distally), ciliate, faces glabrous or sparsely scabroso-strigose. |
basal present at flowering; basal and proximal petiolate, blades oblanceolate to narrowly obovate or spatulate, 20–100 × 5–20 mm, basal much smaller than proximal, margins serrate or entire, somewhat 3-nerved, apices obtuse to acute, cuspidate, faces moderately to densely finely puberulent; mid and distal cauline sessile, blades oblanceolate to elliptic to base, 1 prominent nerve, 10–30 × 4–12 mm, greatly reduced distally, attenuate, margins entire or distally serrate, apices acute, faces densely finely puberulent. |
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Peduncles | 1.5–3 mm, sparsely to moderately scabroso-strigillose; bracteoles linear, grading into phyllaries, scattered along peduncles, clustered near heads. |
2–7 mm, moderately puberulent; bracteoles 0–2, elliptic, minute. |
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Involucres | narrowly campanulate, 4–6.5 mm. |
campanulate, 4–6 mm. |
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Ray florets | (2–)3–7(–9); laminae 3–4 × 0.5–1 mm. |
(5–)6–10 (fewer than number of disc florets); laminae ca. 3 × 1.3–1.6 mm. |
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Disc florets | 6–16; corollas 2.5–4 mm, lobes 0.5–1.2 mm. |
8–20; corollas 4–4.5 mm, lobes 0.8–1.1 mm. |
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Phyllaries | in 3–4 series, appressed, strongly unequal, outer ovate, mid and inner lanceolate, (midnerves often raised and thick) apices acute to obtuse or rounded, glabrous. |
in 3–4 series, oblong, strongly unequal, margins ciliate, apices blunt, glabrous. |
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Heads | 15–300+, not secund, in usually dense, sometimes open, elongate, paniculiform to thyrsiform arrays, (5–)10–45 × (2–)3–7(–12) cm; branches strongly ascending, often racemiform. |
30–100, in broadly corymbiform (modified paniculiform) arrays, sometimes somewhat secund. |
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Cypselae | (narrowly obconic) 1.6–2.5 mm, glabrous; pappi 3–4.5 mm. |
(narrowly obconic) 2–2.8 mm, sparsely strigose; pappi 3.5–4 mm. |
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2n | = 18. |
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Solidago speciosa |
Solidago nana |
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Phenology | Flowering Aug–Sep. | |||||||||
Habitat | Dry to wet soils, often alkaline meadows and flats, open wooded slopes | |||||||||
Elevation | 1700–2700 m (5600–8900 ft) | |||||||||
Distribution |
AL; AR; CO; CT; DE; GA; IA; IL; IN; KS; KY; LA; MA; MD; MI; MN; MO; MS; NC; ND; NE; NJ; NM; NY; OH; OK; RI; SC; SD; TN; TX; VA; VT; WI; WV; WY; ON
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AZ; CO; ID; MT; NM; NV; UT
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Discussion | Subspecies 2 (2 in the flora). Solidago speciosa occurs scattered throughout its range, often in small populations. Five races have been acknowledged; only three varieties appear to warrant recognition. The species is divided into two nearly allopatric subspecies. The typical subspecies includes two varieties that are sometimes difficult to distinguish and considerably overlap in their ranges. The differences in size and number of leaves and persistence of the proximal cauline leaves may be caused in part by growing conditions. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
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Key |
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Source | FNA vol. 20, p. 123. | FNA vol. 20, p. 161. | ||||||||
Parent taxa | Asteraceae > tribe Astereae > Solidago > sect. Solidago > subsect. Squarrosae | Asteraceae > tribe Astereae > Solidago > sect. Solidago > subsect. Nemorales | ||||||||
Sibling taxa | ||||||||||
Subordinate taxa | ||||||||||
Synonyms | Aster speciosus | Aster nanus, S. nivea | ||||||||
Name authority | Nuttall: Gen. N. Amer. Pl. 2: 160. (1818) | Nuttall: Trans. Amer. Philos. Soc., n. s. 7: 327. (1841) | ||||||||
Web links |