Squarrose Goldenrod

Solidago squarrosa may be the most distinctive species of the goldenrods. As a perennial herb, it can reach a height of 190 cm (6 ft). It has a branching underground caudex. Egg-shaped leaves up to 20 cm (8 inches) long near the plant’s base and shorter further up the stem. A slender, elongated array of up to 200 little yellow flower heads per plant can be seen at the top of the stem.

Solidago squarrosa, also referred to as stout goldenrod or Squarrose Goldenrod, is a species of goldenrod found in North America that belongs to the Asteraceae family. It is indigenous to the eastern United States and Canada’s eastern provinces (Ontario, Québec, and New Brunswick) (from Maine west to Indiana and south as far as Tennessee and the Carolinas).

Identification

The leaves have teeth and an egg-like structure. They typically produce a rosette of large leaves at the base. The upper stem is covered in small, slender leaves. A tall cluster of flowers forms at the tip of each stalk. Each flower has 10 to 16 rays and is tightly attached to the stalk. The tiny, backward-curving green leaflets (bracts) at the base of each flower give it away.

Squarrose Goldenrod can grow to be 6 feet tall. Small hairs cover both the stem and the inflorescence branches. The leaves on the base and lower stem are up to 8 inches long, elliptic to ovate, tapering to long, winged stalks, and toothed on the margins. The stem leaves are much smaller, lack stalks, range in shape from lance to oval, and are toothless.

The shape of the inflorescence is elliptical or cylindrical. The numerous spectacular heads are angled sideways (parallel to the ground). Its towering stature, massive lower leaves, and long, thin terminal spike, which lacks dense packing of the enormous heads, should make it easy to identify.

Stems of the Squarrose goldenrod

What started as a solitary flower from seed the previous season will return as a sturdy clump after the stems always die back to the ground in late fall. These flowers are hardy, dependable plants that may flourish in a variety of soil types.

Squarrose Goldenrod Flowers

Squarrose goldenrod is a plentiful flower. Up to 200 tiny yellow flower heads can be produced per plant, arranged in a slender, elongated array at the top of the plant. Ray flowers and tubular disc flowers surround the flower head’s centre. Some areas of the plume have fine bristles. On this type of goldenrod, the small bracts that encircle the flower head resemble small leaves.

Pollinators Can Swarm this Goldenrod

Many insects, including bees, bumblebees, wasps, butterflies, and moths, visit the flower heads. Insects can also consume nectar secreted by the bracts, which are small ‘leaves’ at the base of the flowers that appear after the flowers have finished flowering. Pollination ecologists are aware that Squarrose Goldenrod attracts a large number of native bees, according to the Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation. It is also a plant that attracts parasitic or predatory insects that feed on pest insects.

Other Goldenrods

Discover the differences among many these goldenrods.

• Grass Leaved Goldenrod
• Early Goldenrod
• Stiff Goldenrod
• Rough-stemmed Goldenrod
• Blue Stemmed Goldenrod
• Ohio Goldenrod
• Zigzag Goldenrod

They each have their own uniqueness.