North Carolina Botanical Garden

Plant Index

Scientific Name:
Common Name:
Genus:
Family:

Solidago nemoralis

Solidago nemoralis Aiton

eastern gray goldenrod, gray goldenrod

Solidago nemoralis (Eastern Gray Goldenrod)

Image ID: 8286
Image by: Parkins, Grant Morrow
Image Collection: NCBG Digital Library

PLANT INDEX

ID_PLANT: SONE
SCIENTIFIC NAME: Solidago nemoralis
Include in WOTAS: 1
Publish to Web: 1
Last Modified: 2019-05-10

GENUS INDEX

GENUS CODE: SOLID
GENUS SCIENTIFIC: Solidago
GENUS AUTHORITY: L.
GENUS COMMON: Goldenrod
GENUS SUMMARY: A genus of 90-110 species, herbs, primarily North American, but with a few species in South America, Macaronesia, and Eurasia. The placement of the flat-topped goldenrods has been controversial; they are here included in Solidago rather than being treated as the separate genus Oligoneuron.
GENUS IDENTIFICATION: Identification notes: Several related genera readily mistaken for (and/or sometimes included in) Solidago are included here as keying �failsafes�.
GENUS REFERENCES: Semple & Cook in FNA (2006b); Semple & Peirson (2013)=V; Semple (2013)=U; Nesom (1990); Cronquist (1980)=SE; Morton (1973, 1974); Zhang (1996); Cook & Semple (2004); Nesom (1993b)=Z; Heard & Semple (1988)=Y; Brouillet & Semple (1981)=X; Cronquist (1980)=SE; Braun (1942). Portions of the key adapted (in part) from various sources, especially FNA and SE. [also see Brintonia, Chrysoma, and Euthamia]

FAMILY INDEX

FAMILY CODE: ASTERA
FAMILY SCIENTIFIC: Asteraceae
FAMILY AUTHORITY: Dumortier 1822 or COMPOSITAE Giseke 1792
FAMILY COMMON: Aster Family
FAMILY SUMMARY: A family of about 1500-1700 genera and 20,000-25,000 species, shrubs, herbs, trees, and vines, cosmopolitan in distribution.
FAMILY REFERENCE: Cronquist (1980)=SE throughout family treatment.

NCBG DESCRIPTIVES

INTRO: Erect, rhizomatous perennial of woodlands, glades, barrens and road banks.
STEMS: Stems (1-6 per plant) unbranched and covered with short, white hairs that create a gray-green appearance; inflorescence may lean with weight of flowers.
LEAVES: Leaves basal and alternate on the stem. Basal leaves on winged petioles (but not sheathing), oblong-spoon-shaped, 2-4 in. long, toothed and hairy; upper leaves sessile, smaller, not toothed, hairy and with tufts of tiny leaves in the axils.
INFLORESCENCE:
FLOWERS: Composite flowers (heads) along the nodding branches of a vaguely pyramidal terminal array, mostly on the upper side of each branch; heads about 1/4 in. wide, consisting of 5-11 small, yellow ray florets encircling a center disk of a few tiny, yellow tubular florets.
FRUITS:
COMMENTS:
HEIGHT: 1 1/2-3 ft.

DURATION: Perennial
HABIT: Herb

LEAF ARRANGEMENT: Alternate, Basal
LEAF COMPLEXITY: Simple
LEAF RETENTION: Deciduous

FLORAL CHARACTERISTICS
SYMMETRY: Mixed
BLOOM TIME: Jun-Oct

Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
					x	x	x	x	x

BLOOM COLOR: Yellow

White	Red	Pink	Orange	Yellow	Green	Blue	Lavender	Purple	Violet	Brown	Not Applicable
				x

FRUITING PERIOD:

DISTRIBUTION
HABITAT TYPE: Disturbed, Outcrops and glades, Woods margins
NATIVE RANGE: most of U.S. and Canada

HORTICULTURAL
Plant Sale Text: Eastern gray goldenrod is an easy goldenrod to use in a garden. It is compact and reliably upright and won’t spread aggressively throughout your beds. This low maintenance, drought-tolerant plant is a good choice for late season color and is also attractive to native pollinators. The name gray goldenrod comes from the minute pubescence on the stem and leaves that imparts a grayish color which contrasts nicely with the golden fall blooms. The genus Solidago supports up to 112 species of lepidoptera.

Bloom Table Text: Eastern gray goldenrod is an easy goldenrod to use in a garden. It is compact and reliably upright and won’t spread aggressively throughout your beds. This low maintenance, drought-tolerant plant is a good choice for late season color and is also attractive to native pollinators. The name gray goldenrod comes from the minute pubescence on the stem and leaves that imparts a grayish color which contrasts nicely with the golden fall blooms. The genus Solidago supports up to 112 species of lepidoptera.

NCBG Location: Education Center Landscape

Cultural Notes:

SOIL MOISTURE: Dry, Average
LIGHT EXPOSURE: Sun
MINIMUM HARDINESS ZONE: 2
MAXIMUM HARDINESS ZONE: 9
GERMINATION CODE:
WILDLIFE VALUE: Bee Friendly, Butterfly Friendly
DEER RESISTANCE:

GRIM ACCESSIONS

acc_id	acc_num	acc_dt	coll_id	Action
9383	2021-0046	2021-04-05	0	View

GRIM COLLECTIONS

Coll_id	Project	Collection date	Collector	Action
876	SOS	2016-11-16	Flood	View

GRIM PLANTINGS

plt_num	acc_id	loc_num	pers_num	inst_dt	Action
12626	9383	234	Wait	2020-06-26	View
12627	9383	235	Wait	2020-06-26	View
13130	0	14	Liloia	0000-00-00	View

USDA PLANTS DATABASE

USDA Symbol: SONE
USDA Common Name: Gray Goldenrod
Native Status: L48 (N), CAN (N)
Distribution: USA (AL, AR, CO, CT, DC, DE, FL, GA, IA, IL, IN, KS, KY, LA, MA, MD, ME, MI, MN, MO, MS, MT, NC, ND, NE, NH, NJ, NM, NY, OH, OK, PA, RI, SC, SD, TN, TX, VA, VT, WI, WV, WY), CAN (AB, BC, MB, NB, NS, ON, PE, QC, SK)
Duration: Perennial
Growth Habit: Forb/herb

WEAKLEY FLORA

SCIENTIFIC NAME:
COMMON NAME:
SYNONYMY:
PHENOLOGY:
HABITAT:
COMMENTS:
RANGE MAP:

Key to Map Symbols

ABOUT FAMILY (Weakley Flora)
Asteraceae Dumortier 1822 or COMPOSITAE Giseke 1792 (Aster Family)
SUMMARY: A family of about 1500-1700 genera and 20,000-25,000 species, shrubs, herbs, trees, and vines, cosmopolitan in distribution.
REFERENCE: Cronquist (1980)=SE throughout family treatment.

ABOUT GENUS (Weakley Flora)
Solidago L. (Goldenrod)
SUMMARY: A genus of 90-110 species, herbs, primarily North American, but with a few species in South America, Macaronesia, and Eurasia. The placement of the flat-topped goldenrods has been controversial; they are here included in Solidago rather than being treated as the separate genus Oligoneuron.
REFERENCE: Semple & Cook in FNA (2006b); Semple & Peirson (2013)=V; Semple (2013)=U; Nesom (1990); Cronquist (1980)=SE; Morton (1973, 1974); Zhang (1996); Cook & Semple (2004); Nesom (1993b)=Z; Heard & Semple (1988)=Y; Brouillet & Semple (1981)=X; Cronquist (1980)=SE; Braun (1942). Portions of the key adapted (in part) from various sources, especially FNA and SE. [also see Brintonia, Chrysoma, and Euthamia]

HERBARIUM RESOURCES

SERNEC: Find Solidago nemoralis in Southeast Regional Network of Experts and Collections (if available)
UNC SERNEC: Find Solidago nemoralis in University of North Carolina Chapel Hill Herbarium - Southeast Regional Network of Experts and Collections (if available)

WEB RESOURCES

USDA: Find Solidago nemoralis in USDA Plants
NPIN: Find Solidago nemoralis in NPIN Database
FNA: Find Solidago nemoralis in the Flora of North America (if available)
Google: Search Google for Solidago nemoralis

IMAGE USE RECORDS

ID IMAGE: 8286 - Primary Image FloraQuest Plant Detail Page (Landscape Preferred)
ID IMAGE1: 8286 - Primary Image WOTAS
ID IMAGE2: 0 - Secondary Image WOTAS
ID IMAGE3: 30540 - Primary Image Plant Sale Sign (Landscape Only)
ID IMAGE4: 0 - Primary Image New Plant Sale Label (Portrait Only)