Description: This native perennial plant is about 1-3' tall and little branched, except toward the apex where the flowers occur. The central stem is slender and glabrous. The alternate leaves are up to 3½" long and 1½" across, becoming smaller as they ascend the stems. They are lanceolate or ovate, serrated along their margins, and pinnately veined. The upper surface of each leaf is glabrous, while the lower surface has a few hairs along the major veins.
The central stem terminates in a
spreading panicle of flowering racemes. This panicle is rather lanky and often
causes the entire plant to lean over because of the weight of the flowerheads.
Each flowerhead is about 1/8" across; it consists of several yellow ray florets
that surround the yellow disk florets. At the base of each flowerhead, there is
an overlapping series of floral bracts; these bracts are green and narrow. In
addition to these flowerheads, small leaves (or leafy bracts) are interspersed
along the racemes; these racemes are often pubescent. Short secondary racemes
of flowers often develop from the axils of the upper leaves. The blooming
period occurs from late summer to early fall and lasts about 3-4 weeks. Each
floret is fertile and develops into a small achene with a tuft of hair. These
achenes are dispersed by the wind. The root system consists of a branching
caudex and secondary fibrous roots; rhizomes are also produced, which enable
this plant to form vegetative colonies.
Cultivation: The preference is light shade to
partial sun, moist to slightly dry conditions, and a soil that is loamy or
slightly rocky.
Range &
Habitat: Elm-Leaved Goldenrod is a common plant that has been
observed in nearly all counties of Illinois. Among woodland goldenrods, it is
the most common species in the state. Habitats include mesic to slightly dry
deciduous woodlands, woodland edges, thinly wooded bluffs, limestone glades,
shady banks of rivers, and thickets. This species can spread to edges of lawns
underneath trees from adjacent woodland areas.
Faunal Associations: The flowers attract various
kinds of bees, wasps, and flies. These insects seek nectar; bees also collect
pollen. Among the bees, are such visitors as Miner bees, Halictid bees, Masked
bees (Hylaeus spp.), Plasterer bees, Andrenid bees, Dagger bees (Panurginae),
and Large Leaf-Cutting bees. The caterpillars of many moths feed on the foliage
and other parts of Goldenrods (see Moth Table). Some upland gamebirds, such as the Greater
Prairie Chicken and Ruffed Grouse, eat the foliage to a limited extent. The
seeds of Goldenrods are a minor source of food to some granivorous songbirds,
including the Eastern Goldfinch and Swamp Sparrow. The Cottontail Rabbit and
White-Tailed Deer browse on the foliage occasionally.
Photographic Location: At the edge of a wooded area
in Crystal Lake Park, Urbana, Illinois.
Comments: This woodland goldenrod has a terminal
inflorescence that is rather lanky and spreading, while its lower leaves are
ovate and coarsely serrated (resembling the leaves of American Elm, but more
smooth and thin-textured). It is largely hairless, except for a few hairs on
the undersides of its leaves and the slight pubescence of its racemes. The
common Solidago canadensis (Canada Goldenrod) can also be found along
the edges of woodlands, but it is a taller and more erect plant that has a
hairy or pubescent central stem and narrow lower leaves with 3 parallel veins.
The other woodland goldenrods are a rather diverse group that are difficult to
characterize, but they differ from Elm-Leaved Goldenrod in the characteristics
of their inflorescence, leaves, or stems.