Native Plant of the Week: Blue-Stemmed Goldenrod ~ Solidago caesia

Blue Stemmed Goldenrod ~ Solidago caesia (Wreath Goldenrod)


This Goldenrod species is another really late season bloomer. In full bloom right now in my landscape, it's a nice bright spot in the shaded woodland.

Named for its light blue-gray stems, this native perennial likes shady, medium to dry locations. It's a great native to introduce under large trees in tough to grow sites. Its clump forming growth habit also makes it ideal for massing. Reaching anywhere between 1 and 3 feet in height, it can be utilized interspersed with early flowering natives, or bordering a woodland edge.

The only insect activity I've seen when it's flowering is ants. Since we've had many hard frosts, there are fewer pollinators about.

In mid to late August you may find Brown Hooded Owlet Moth (Cucullia convexipennis) caterpillars feeding on the foliage. This and Zigzag Goldenrod (Solidago flexicaulis) seem to be the preferred host plants of this caterpillar in my landscape.

Blue-Stemmed Goldenrod is native to eastern North America. See map below for range.

Kartesz, J.T., The Biota of North America Program (BONAP).
2011. North American Plant Atlas. Chapel Hill, N.C.

Witch Hazel - The Last to Flower

Witch Hazel ~ Hamamelis virginiana


The Witch Hazel in our yard is flowering later than last year which was in early October. With our dry fall, the leaves have browned and have not yet fallen. It makes a nice backdrop to the frilly yellow flowers.

Witch Hazel is a wonderful understory large shrub or small tree. It can be used as a specimen, or incorporated into a partly shaded woodland or woodland edge.

Its northern native range is the southeastern tip of Minnesota, but it does grow well in the metro area just north.

I plan to capture which insects are pollinating the flowers, since we've had several hard frosts there aren't many pollinators about.

Read more about Witch Hazel in an earlier post.

2011: New Discoveries in my Landscape

Stop by the Native Plants & Wildlife Gardens Blog and check out my post today: Building a Foundation of Discovery Through Native Plants

Two Dependable Understory Native Shrubs

American Hazelnut ~ Corylus americana

Out of all the native shrubs in my own regional landscape, two that stand out as very dependable understory shrubs are American Hazelnut (Corylus americana) and Downy Arrowwood Viburnum (Viburnum rafinesquianum). Both of these shrubs are fairly common, growing in the understory of oak dominated woodlands, as well as on the edges in thickets.

American Hazelnut flowers before the leaves emerge in late March to early April. The male catkins elongate and dangle from the branches, an attractive trait of this native shrub.

The female flowers are more inconspicuous, attached the branch in a small scaled catkin. The bright red stigmas protrude from the ends of the female flower and catch the wind dispersed pollen.

Hazelnuts form in clusters from the pollinated female catkin. The nuts are covered with a frilly bract that turns from yellow-green to light brown as the nuts inside mature. The nuts are a favorite food of squirrels and chipmunks.

American Hazelnut is an excellent shrub for understories or shady, well drained landscapes. It performs well under tree canopies providing good understory cover for birds and small mammals. It has a suckering habit, new shoots arise around the older stems. The large coarse leaves are very attractive and the overall form is an upright and branching.

American Hazelnut can reach heights of 15 feet or more in moist rich soils, but in drier upland sites, it's more commonly around 6 feet in height.

Downy Arrowwood Viburnum is also a good candidate for dry shady locations. We had a small patch of this shrub existing in our landscape when we moved into our house and have since added more.

Downy Arrowwood flowers in mid to late May, tiny 5 parted white flowers arranged in a cyme.

A slender multi-stemmed shrub, that can reach heights of 10 feet when mature. There are some beautiful mature specimens at a local park, that have a vase shaped form with most of the leaves near the top of the cluster.

Downy Arrowwood also suckers, forming thickets in more open areas. It has extremely attractive leaves, with deep veins and coarsely serrated edges. I have had great success adding more of this shrub into my dry shaded woodland.

Fall foliage color on Downy Arrowwood is spectacular, anywhere from pink-tinged to maroon to bright red.

Spring migrating warblers always stop in our yard to investigate what insects they can find on both of these native shrubs. Other ground foragers such as robins and sparrows seem to like the cover these medium sized shrubs provide in our woodland landscape.

Native Plant of the Week: Golden Alexanders ~ Zizia aurea

Golden Alexanders ~ Zizia aurea


Although this is a spring flowering native perennial, it's worth featuring this time of year for its fall foliage color.

The leaves and stems of Golden Alexander turn a bright maroon color in the fall giving it two seasons of interest.

A native of both sunny and shady sites, it prefers well drained soils that range from medium to moist conditions.

Golden Alexanders are a great native addition to the landscape because they flower early in the spring, starting as early as the second week of May in the upper Midwest.

The clusters of yellow flowers are arranged in an umbel. The small flowers provide much needed nectar and pollen for emerging native bees.

This native also falls in the Parsley or Carrot family (Apiaceae) and is a larval host to Swallowtail Butterflies.

Golden Alexanders make a spring prairie landscape come alive. They respond wonderfully after a burn. This photo shows a prairie landscape in early June after a late fall burn.

Kartesz, J.T., The Biota of North America Program (BONAP).
2011. North American Plant Atlas. Chapel Hill, N.C.

Golden Alexanders are native to eastern North America. See map for range.

Some Late Season Insect Visitors

The native asters and goldenrod species have been providing some much needed nectar and pollen to insects lately.

Here are some photos of the visitors.

Yellow Collared Scape Moth
Cisseps fulvicollis


Read an earlier post about this moth

Spotted Cucumber Beetle
Diabrotica undecimpunctata

Striped Cucumber Beetle
Acalymma vittatum

A Weevil species

Bumble Bees

A Non-Native Tree that has Naturalized

Amur Cork Tree ~ Phellodendron amurense

It's hard to miss the fruit of the Amur Cork Tree this time of year, the female trees are laden with the dark blue clusters. The compound leaves also turn a golden yellow, so the fruit stands out even more.

Native to eastern Asia; northern China, Manchuria, Korea, Ussuri, Amur, and Japan, the Amur cork tree is considered invasive in many parts of North America. (Wikipedia)

I first noticed these non-native trees a few years ago. The bark is very different in texture and color from any of our native trees, light gray with a raised wavy bark pattern. Both male and female trees are growing along the Maple-Basswood woodland edge in this park. A few are more upland and the other cluster is at the bottom of a east facing wooded hill.

This park is a few miles from the University of Minnesota Landscape Arboretum where a there is a Cork Tree Collection. It is quite possible that the seed was bird dispersed from the trees in their collection. A few years ago, the Arboretum removed all the female trees in this collection due to their potential to become invasive.

Based upon the size of these trees in the park, (they are 8-10" dbh) they've been here for several years.

Have you seen Amur Cork Tree naturalizing in your area?

Native Plant of the Week: Nannyberry Viburnum ~ Viburnum lentago

Nannyberry Viburnum ~ Viburnum lentago


Nannyberry Viburnum is beautiful this time of year. The leaves turn anywhere from pink to maroon to bright red.

A large native shrub/small tree, it's common in our Minnesota woodland edges and sunny open areas in the understory. Often found in medium to dry, loamy to sandy soils, it's a very adaptable native.

The leaves are a medium green and glossy when they emerge and stay shiny and attractive throughout the summer. The leaves have a droopy appearance hanging slightly downwards. The leaves are susceptible to powdery mildew although, if planted in a spot without good air movement.

One of its most distinguishing features is the bud. Very long and linear, its form especially stands out in winter months.

Nannyberry fruit (drupe) ripens in mid to late September. The clusters of fruit hang downwards and last through part of the winter before being eaten by birds.

Nannyberry Viburnum can reach heights of 25 feet, but mature plants are often found around 15 feet. The large clusters are multi-stemmed and new clones sucker from the roots.

The white 5 parted flowers emerge in late May, arranged in a somewhat flat-topped cyme.

It has been cultivated by the horticultural trade for several years, and small tree forms are available as well as shrubs.

I have several seedlings in my yard from planting collected seed. I have also planted quite a few mature Nannyberry shrubs in my yard as it grows locally.

Nannyberry Viburnum is native to the northeastern States and eastern Provinces in North America.

See map below for range.

Kartesz, J.T., The Biota of North America Program (BONAP).
2011. North American Plant Atlas. Chapel Hill, N.C.

A Bristly Native Vine

Bristly Greenbrier ~ Smilax tamnoides


Bristly Greenbrier is one of several Smilax species in the upper midwest. It's considered a woody vine, although it doesn't seem to develop an aged or woody looking stem. The stem is covered in different sized prickles that are very sharp.

Growing to almost 10 feet high, it tends to grow upwards and arch over other plants. The prickles (along with the tendrils) help it to catch on plants or stems to climb upwards.

Bristly Greenbrier is found in medium woodlands in part shade as well as lower lying areas that are seasonally wet.

The leaves are a medium green, heart shaped with parallel veins. Flowers clusters emerge from the leaf axil and open in late May to early June. They are smaller and looser clusters than some of the other Smilax species. The blue-black fruit form in fall hanging downwards from the vine.

This photo is of the Hairy Carrion Flower Vine ~ Smilax lasioneura. A non-bristly herbaceous vine, it's much easier to manage in the landscape. It grows to about 8 feet tall, but usually found much shorter. A native to woodlands and openings, it's tolerant of dry sandy soils.

Flowers on the Hairy Carrion Flower emerge from the underside of the leaves, are tightly clustered in a round umbel. The common name Carrion is for the flower fragrance which is quite strong and smells of carrion or dead animals. This vine also flowers in late May to early June.

Discoveries Out and About: American Figwort ~ Scrophularia lanceolata

American Figwort ~ Scrohpularia lanceolata


I came across American Figwort in early June at a local park. Just starting to flower, this 6 foot tall perennial has tiny flowers but its height makes it stand out above other plants.

The few plants I saw at this park were growing at the edge of the woodland in part sun and sandy soil.

The flowers are really interesting, tubular and 5 parted, with two upper lips that are rusty red to brown. The branched cluster of flowers is tall and linear, about 6-8" high and 3" wide.

The leaves are arranged opposite on the flower stalk. They are coarsely toothed, and longer than wide.

There is an Eastern Figwort (Scrophularia marilandica) which is less common in the upper midwest. It's even taller reaching heights of 10 feet. The leaf stalks are much longer on the Eastern Figwort compared to the American Figwort. The Eastern Figwort also flowers later in the season in July. (Wildflowers of Wisconsin)

The hard brown seed capsules are maturing right now. If you have an abundance of this native perennial, cold stratify the seeds in the fridge for 60 days, then sow on the soil surface. The seeds need light to germinate. (Prairie Moon Nursery)