Canada Goldenrod Solidago canadensis Blooms Goldenly July to October

Summary: Canada Goldenrod (Solidago canadensis), a New World native perennial wildflower, blooms lengthily from midsummer to autumn.

closeup of Canada goldenrod's characteristically arching plume of flowers: Robert H. Mohlenbrock/USDA Wetland Science Institute (WSI), Public Domain, via USDA NRCS PLANTS Database

Canada goldenrod (Solidago canadensis) is a New World native perennial with late and lengthy blooming that straddles two seasons, from July to October.

Canada goldenrod claims native homelands in Canada and the United States. In Canada, the perennial occurs natively in all ten provinces and in two of three territories. Canada goldenrod is not native to the northernmost territory, Nunavut.

In the United States, the native wildflower is found natively in 44 of the 50 states. Canada goldenrod is not native to Georgia, Hawaii, three (Alabama, Florida, Louisiana) of the five Gulf States, or South Carolina. The North American native also is not native to Puerto Rico or the U.S. Virgin Islands.

Canada goldenrod prefers moist habitats with full sun. The plant displays fair shade tolerance. Habitats inhabited by Canada goldenrod include fields, pastures, prairies, roadsides and thickets.

Canada goldenrod’s genus name, Solidago, derives from the Latin verb solido, which means “to make whole or heal.” The genus name reflects the reputation of many species in the genus as promoters of well-being.

Solidago canadensis is often classified as a distinct species containing five varieties. Canadensis, gilvocanescens, hargeri, salebrosa and scabra are recognized as varieties of Canada goldenrod.

Solidago canadensis is most commonly known as Canada goldenrod or Canadian goldenrod. Meadow goldenrod is another common name. Some of the other common names are associated with the wildflower’s other four varieties. The common name for the gilvocanescens variety is shorthair goldenrod. The hargeri variety is known commonly as Harger’s goldenrod. Rough goldenrod is the common name for the salebrosa variety. The scabra variety is known commonly as tall goldenrod.

The New World native’s aerial stems arise from rootlike underground stems known as rhizomes (Ancient Greek: ῥίζα, rhíza, “root”). Rhizomes range in length from 2 to 5 inches (5 to 12 centimeters).

Canada goldenrod may grow to 4 to 5 feet (1.21 to 1.52 meters), with an equiproportional spread. Sometimes Canada goldenrod has a height of over 7 feet (2.13 meters).

Stems are erect and hairless from the base up toward floral branching. Fine hairs are found on the upper plant.

Lance-shaped, sharply toothed leaves numerously alternate along the stem. Larger leaves are found on the lower stem.

As a member of the daisy or sunflower family of Asteraceae, Canada goldenrod blooms in characteristic clusters of disk and ray flowers. Flowers appear on large, horizontal branchings, known as panicles, atop the tall, firm stems. The panicles trace a pyramidal plume as branch lengths decrease toward the top.

Masses of tiny flowers, sized at about one-eighth of an inch (0.31 centimeters), open in a profusion of sunny yellow coloring, from July to October. Drooping branchings loaded densely with recurved, strap-shaped ray flowers around central, tube-shaped disk flowers create Canada goldenrod’s characteristic arching plume.

Seeds are enclosed singly within a simple dry fruit known as an achene. The capsule has sparse hairs. Bunches of pale bristles emerge from the achene’s top.

Canada goldenrod persists through wind dispersal of insect-pollinated seeds and through colony clumps formed by creeping rhizomes. Solidago canadensis is a long-lived species, with decades of persistence in established areas. In their 1976 research report, environmental biologists Patricia A. Werner, then with Michigan State University, and William J. Platt, then with the University of Illinois, noted prairie populations of Solidago canadensis, along with five other Solidago species, with a presence on the Cayler Prairie State Preserve in northwestern Iowa’s Dickinson County dating back more than 150 years.

Canada goldenrod lightly populates the sunny field that frames my yard’s northwestern edge. The wildflower’s arching plumes randomly golden the field’s lush greenery. The occurrence of wingstem (Verbesina alternifolia), another tall, yellow-flowered native plant, at separate spots in the field emphasizes the beautiful differences in floral outlines and in yellow hues.

golden stand of flowering Canada goldenrod: Harry Rose from South West Rocks, Australia, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Acknowledgment

My special thanks to talented artists and photographers/concerned organizations who make their fine images available on the internet.

Image credits:

Robert H. Mohlenbrock/USDA Wetland Science Institute (WSI), Public Domain, via USDA NRCS PLANTS Database @ http://plants.usda.gov/java/largeImage?imageID=soca6_002_ahp.tif

A golden stand of flowering Canada goldenrod: Harry Rose from South West Rocks, Australia, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons @ https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Solidago_canadensis_flowerhead1_(16189416842).jpg

For further information:

Abrahamson, Warren G., and Arthur E. Weis. Evolutionary Ecology Across Three Trophic Levels: Goldenrods, Gallmakers, and Natural Enemies. Monographs in Population Biology, vol. 29. Princeton NJ: Princeton University Press, 1997.

Coladonato, Milo. “Solidago Canadensis.” US Forest Service > Fire Effects Information System (FEIS) Database > Plants > Forb.
Available @ http://www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/plants/forb/solcan/all.html

Craig, Timothy P.; Joanne K. Itami; John D. Horner. “Geographic Variation in the Evolution and Coevolution of a Tritrophic Interaction.” Evolution, vol. 61, issue 5 (May 2007): 1137-1152.
Available @ http://www.bioone.org/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1558-5646.2007.00099.x

“Goldenrod Gall Fly Eurosta solidaginis.” Fairfax County Public Schools > Island Creek Elementary School > Ecology.
Available @ http://www2.fcps.edu/islandcreekes/ecology/goldenrod_gall_fly.htm

Linnaeus, Carl von. 1753. "2. Solidago canadensis." Species Plantarum, tomus II: 878. Holmiae [Stockholm, Sweden]: Laurentii Salvii [Laurentius Salvius].
Available via Biodiversity Heritage Library @ https://biodiversitylibrary.org/page/358899

Marriner, Derdriu. "Wingstem Verbesina alternifolia: Bright Yellow Flowers Top Tall Stems." Earth and Space News. Saturday, Aug. 6, 2016.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2016/08/wingstem-verbesina-alternifolia-bright.html

Pavek, Pamela L.S. “Plant Fact Sheet for Canada Goldenrod (Solidago canadensis).” USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) > Plant Fact Sheet.
Available @ http://plants.usda.gov/plantguide/pdf/pg_soca6.pdf

Pavek, Pamela L.S. “Plant Guide for Canada Goldenrod (Solidago canadensis).” USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) > Plant Guide.
Available @ http://plants.usda.gov/plantguide/pdf/pg_soca6.pdf

“Solidago altissima.” Iowa Plants > Flora > Family > Asteraceae > Solidago.
Available @ http://iowaplants.com/flora/family/Asteraceae/solidago/s_altissima/Solidago_altissima.html

“Solidago altissima.” Native American Ethnobotany Database > Uses.
Available @ http://naeb.brit.org/uses/search/?string=solidago+altissima

“Solidago altissima Linnaeus.” Flora of North America > Flora Taxon.
Available @ http://www.efloras.org/florataxon.aspx?flora_id=1&taxon_id=242414377

“Solidago canadensis.” Missouri Botanical Garden > Gardens & Gardening > Your Garden > Plant Finder.
Available @ http://www.missouribotanicalgarden.org/PlantFinder/PlantFinderDetails.aspx?taxonid=277473&isprofile=1&gen=Solidago

“Solidago canadensis.” Native American Ethnobotany Database > Uses.
Available @ http://naeb.brit.org/uses/search/?string=solidago+canadensis

"Solidago canadensis L." Tropicos® > Name Search.
Available @ http://www.tropicos.org/Name/2711073

“Solidago canadensis Linnaeus.” Flora of North America > Flora Taxon.
Available @ http://www.efloras.org/florataxon.aspx?flora_id=1&taxon_id=200024550

Werner, Patricia A., and William J. Platt. “Ecological Relationships of Co-Occurring Goldenrods (Solidago: Compositae).” The American Naturalist, vol. 110, no. 976 (Nov.-Dec. 1976): 959-971.
Available @ https://www.jstor.org/stable/2460024?seq=1#page_scan_tab_contents