''Solidago nemoralis'' is a species of

flowering plant Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (). The term angiosperm is derived from the Ancient Greek, Greek words (; 'container, vessel') and (; 'seed'), meaning that the seeds are enclosed with ...

in the family

Asteraceae Asteraceae () is a large family (biology), family of flowering plants that consists of over 32,000 known species in over 1,900 genera within the Order (biology), order Asterales. The number of species in Asteraceae is rivaled only by the Orchi ...

. It is native to North America, where it is widely found in Canada (every province except

Newfoundland and Labrador Newfoundland and Labrador is the easternmost province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic region. The province comprises the island of Newfoundland and the continental region of Labrador, having a total size of . As of 2025 the populatio ...

) and the United States (all states wholly or partially east of the

Rocky Mountains The Rocky Mountains, also known as the Rockies, are a major mountain range and the largest mountain system in North America. The Rocky Mountains stretch in great-circle distance, straight-line distance from the northernmost part of Western Can ...

). Its common names include gray goldenrod, gray-stem goldenrod, old-field goldenrod, field goldenrod,''Solidago nemoralis''.
NatureServe. 2012. prairie goldenrod, dwarf goldenrod,Belt, S. 2009
Plant Fact Sheet for gray goldenrod (''Solidago nemoralis'').
USDA NRCS, Norman A. Berg National Plant Materials Center, Beltsville, MD. 2009. and dyersweed goldenrod.''Solidago nemoralis''.
Native American Ethnobotany. University of Michigan, Dearborn.

Description

Like other goldenrods, this species is a perennial herb. One of the smaller goldenrods, it grows 20 centimeters to one meter (8–40 inches) tall from a branching underground

caudex A caudex (: caudices) of a plant is a stem, but the term is also used to mean a rootstock and particularly a basal stem structure from which new growth arises.pages 456 and 695 In the strict sense of the term, meaning a stem, "caudex" is most ...

. There are 1 to 6 erect stems, sometimes more. The stems are reddish to gray-green and have lines of short, white hairs. The lower leaves are up to 10 centimeters (4 inches long) and the blades are borne on winged petioles. Leaves on the upper half of the stem are narrower and shorter and lack petioles. The spreading

inflorescence In botany, an inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a plant's Plant stem, stem that is composed of a main branch or a system of branches. An inflorescence is categorized on the basis of the arrangement of flowers on a mai ...

can carry up to 300

flower heads A pseudanthium (; : pseudanthia) is an inflorescence that resembles a flower. The word is sometimes used for other structures that are neither a true flower nor a true inflorescence. Examples of pseudanthia include flower heads, composite flowers ...

. The head contains 5 to 11 yellow

ray florets Asteraceae () is a large family of flowering plants that consists of over 32,000 known species in over 1,900 genera within the order Asterales. The number of species in Asteraceae is rivaled only by the Orchidaceae, and which is the larger fa ...

each a few millimeters long surrounding up to 10 yellow

disc floret Asteraceae () is a large family of flowering plants that consists of over 32,000 known species in over 1,900 genera within the order Asterales. The number of species in Asteraceae is rivaled only by the Orchidaceae, and which is the larger fa ...

s. Flowering occurs in late summer and fall. The fruit is a rough-texured cypsela about 2 millimeters long tipped with a pappus of bristles slightly longer. There are two

subspecies In Taxonomy (biology), biological classification, subspecies (: subspecies) is a rank below species, used for populations that live in different areas and vary in size, shape, or other physical characteristics (Morphology (biology), morpholog ...

: *''Solidago nemoralis'' ssp. ''decemflora'' –

tetraploid Polyploidy is a condition in which the cells of an organism have more than two paired sets of ( homologous) chromosomes. Most species whose cells have nuclei (eukaryotes) are diploid, meaning they have two complete sets of chromosomes, one fro ...

taxon with larger flower heads and narrower basal leaves in west-central North America *''Solidago nemoralis'' ssp. ''nemoralis'' – diploid or tetraploid taxon in the eastern regions of the species' range

Ecology

This plant grows in forests, woods,

prairie Prairies are ecosystems considered part of the temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands biome by ecologists, based on similar temperate climates, moderate rainfall, and a composition of grasses, herbs, and shrubs, rather than trees, as the ...

s, grasslands, and disturbed areas such as old fields and roadsides. It is a

pioneer species Pioneer species are resilient species that are the first to colonize barren environments, or to repopulate disrupted biodiverse steady-state ecosystems as part of ecological succession. Various kinds of events can create good conditions for pi ...

and it can become

weed A weed is a plant considered undesirable in a particular situation, growing where it conflicts with human preferences, needs, or goals.Harlan, J. R., & deWet, J. M. (1965). Some thoughts about weeds. ''Economic botany'', ''19''(1), 16-24. Pla ...

y. The flowers have a variety of insect

pollinator A pollinator is an animal that moves pollen from the male anther of a flower to the female carpel, stigma of a flower. This helps to bring about fertilization of the ovules in the flower by the male gametes from the pollen grains. Insects are ...

s, including

honey bee A honey bee (also spelled honeybee) is a eusocial flying insect within the genus ''Apis'' of the bee clade, all native to mainland Afro-Eurasia. After bees spread naturally throughout Africa and Eurasia, humans became responsible for the ...

carpenter bee Carpenter bees are species in the genus ''Xylocopa'' of the subfamily Xylocopinae. The genus includes some 500 bees in 31 subgenera. The common name "carpenter bee" derives from their nesting behavior; nearly all species burrow into hard plant m ...

s, sweat bees,

plasterer bee The Colletidae are a family (biology), family of bees, and are often referred to collectively as plasterer bees or polyester bees, due to the method of smoothing the walls of their nest cells with secretions applied with their mouthparts; these s ...

sphecid wasp The Sphecidae are a cosmopolitan family of wasps of the suborder Apocrita that includes sand wasps, mud daubers, and other thread-waisted wasps. The name Sphecidae was formerly given to a much larger grouping of wasps. This was found to be p ...

s, vespid wasps,

butterflies Butterflies are winged insects from the lepidopteran superfamily Papilionoidea, characterized by large, often brightly coloured wings that often fold together when at rest, and a conspicuous, fluttering flight. The oldest butterfly fossi ...

moth Moths are a group of insects that includes all members of the order Lepidoptera that are not Butterfly, butterflies. They were previously classified as suborder Heterocera, but the group is Paraphyly, paraphyletic with respect to butterflies (s ...

beetle Beetles are insects that form the Taxonomic rank, order Coleoptera (), in the superorder Holometabola. Their front pair of wings are hardened into wing-cases, elytra, distinguishing them from most other insects. The Coleoptera, with about 40 ...

hoverflies Hoverflies, also called flower flies or syrphids, make up the insect family (biology), family Syrphidae. As their common name suggests, they are often seen Hover (behaviour), hovering or nectaring at flowers; the adults of many species feed main ...

, tachinid flies,

flesh flies Sarcophagidae () are a family of flies commonly known as flesh flies. They differ from most flies in that they are ovoviviparous, opportunistically depositing hatched or hatching maggots instead of eggs on carrion, dung, decaying material, or op ...

, blow flies, and muscid flies. Insects such as the goldenrod scarlet plant bug,

leaf-footed bug Coreidae is a large family of predominantly sap-sucking insects in the Hemipteran suborder Heteroptera. The name "Coreidae" derives from the genus '' Coreus'', which derives from the Ancient Greek () meaning bedbug. As a family, the Coreidae ...

s, and various

caterpillar Caterpillars ( ) are the larval stage of members of the order Lepidoptera (the insect order comprising butterflies and moths). As with most common names, the application of the word is arbitrary, since the larvae of sawflies (suborder ...

s feed on the foliage. The

American goldfinch The American goldfinch (''Spinus tristis'') is a small North American bird in the finch Family (biology), family. It is Bird migration, migratory, ranging from mid-Alberta to North Carolina during the breeding season, and from just south of th ...

feeds on the fruits.

Galls

This species is host to the following insect induced galls: * '' Asteromyia carbonifera'' (Osten Sacken, 1862) * ''

Epiblema scudderiana ''Epiblema scudderiana'', the goldenrod gall moth, is a species of tortricid moth in the family Tortricidae. As their common name suggests, they do feed on and form galls on goldenrod stems. To overwinter the caterpillars line the inside of their ...

'' (Clemens, 1860) * ''

Gnorimoschema gallaesolidaginis ''Gnorimoschema gallaesolidaginis'', the solidago gall moth, goldenrod gall moth or goldenrod gallmaker, is a moth in the family Gelechiidae. It was described by Riley in 1869. It is found in North America, where it has been recorded from Alberta ...

'' (Fitch, 1855) * ''

Procecidochares atra ''Procecidochares atra'' is a species of tephritid or fruit flies in the genus ''Procecidochares'' of the family Tephritidae. Its galls are most common on '' Solidago altissima, S. gigantea, S. rugosa''.http://bugguide.net/node/view/68596 Bugg ...

'' (Loew, 1862) (summer and autumn generations)

Uses

The plant has had various uses among

Native American peoples In the Americas, Indigenous peoples comprise the two continents' pre-Columbian inhabitants, as well as the ethnic groups that identify with them in the 15th century, as well as the ethnic groups that identify with the pre-Columbian population of ...

. The

Houma people The Houma () are a historic Native American people of Louisiana and Mississippi on the east side of the Red River of the South. They once spoke a Western Muskogean language. Language The Houma spoke the Houma language, which is poorly attest ...

have used it medicinally to treat

jaundice Jaundice, also known as icterus, is a yellowish or, less frequently, greenish pigmentation of the skin and sclera due to high bilirubin levels. Jaundice in adults is typically a sign indicating the presence of underlying diseases involving ...

. The

Goshute The Goshutes are a tribe of Western Shoshone Native Americans. There are two federally recognized Goshute tribes today: * Confederated Tribes of the Goshute Reservation, located in Nevada and Utah * Skull Valley Band of Goshute Indians of ...

have used the seeds for food. The

Navajo The Navajo or Diné are an Indigenous people of the Southwestern United States. Their traditional language is Diné bizaad, a Southern Athabascan language. The states with the largest Diné populations are Arizona (140,263) and New Mexico (1 ...

have used it as

incense Incense is an aromatic biotic material that releases fragrant smoke when burnt. The term is used for either the material or the aroma. Incense is used for aesthetic reasons, religious worship, aromatherapy, meditation, and ceremonial reasons. It ...

. It is cultivated in landscaping and gardens, such as

butterfly garden Butterfly gardening is a way to create, improve, and maintain habitat for lepidopterans including butterflies, skippers, and moths. Butterflies have four distinct life stages—egg, larva, chrysalis, and adult. In order to support and sustain ...

References

External links

* {{Taxonbar, from=Q7557960 nemoralis Flora of Northern America Plants described in 1789