Solidago puberula Nutt.

Locations ofSolidago puberula Nutt. in Virginia

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Detail

Family
Asteraceae
Botanical Name
Solidago puberula Nutt.
Common Name
Downy Goldenrod
Synonym(s)
Solidago puberula Nutt. var. puberula
Flora of Virginia Name/Status
Solidago puberula Nutt.
Comments
The treatment here follows Flora of Virginia and Flora of the Southeastern U.S. (Weakley et al. 2023) in recognizing the traditional varieties of Solidago puberula (var. puberula and var. pulverulenta) at species level. This is supported by morphometric studies by Semple et al. (2020, Phytoneuron 2020-70. 1-22). For the most part, northeastern/inland Solidago puberula (sensu stricto) is geographically separated from southeastern/Coastal Plain S. pulverulenta. However, east-central Virginia is the one area of sympatric distribution; and in this area, the two species can be similar and differences between them can often be subtle. The number of stem leaves is highly variable on both taxa and overlapping between the two; other characters used in keys, including the size of mid-stem leaves and the size and shape of the phyllaries are more reliable. Generally, however, specimens are assignable unless damaged or de-foliated by drought. See also map for Solidago pulverulenta.
Habitat
Dry, open forests, woodlands, barrens, clearings, and old fields; generally associated with extremely acidic, nutrient-poor soils. Infrequent to locally common in the mountains and Piedmont, rare in the n. Coastal Plain; this taxon has an uneven distribution in the state: very common in some areas, entirely absent from others.
Native Status
Native

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