Solidago bicolor - Silverrod

Solidago bicolor - SilverrodSizes available: #1 (Trade gallon) Basics: zones 3 9, 1 3" x 1', full sun to part shade, spike of white flowers held above the crown in mid late summer through fall, likes medium to dry soils and is not picky as to soil type, but prefers good drainage. Common names: Silverrod, White Goldenrod Family: Asteraceae Origin Distribution: Manitoba east to Nova Scotia, south to Georgia, west to Louisiana, north to Illinois and Wisconsin, native to Maine.

Sizes available: #1 (Trade gallon)

Basics: zones 3-9, 1-3" x 1', full sun to part shade, spike of white flowers held above the crown in mid-late summer through fall, likes medium to dry soils and is not picky as to soil type, but prefers good drainage.

Common names: Silverrod, White Goldenrod

Family: Asteraceae

Origin/Distribution: Manitoba east to Nova Scotia, south to Georgia, west to Louisiana, north to Illinois and Wisconsin, native to Maine. These plants were grown from seed collected in New England.

Habitat: thin wooded area, woodland clearings and edges, roadsides, fields

More: This is an underused goldenrod for the garden. In particular it works well in a shady woodland space where the white blooms show up beautifully and its size works well with other native woodlanders in a flowery, leafy underlayer below mature trees. The genus Solidago is a powerhouse supporter of hundreds of insect species, including these three specialist bees that are native to Maine: Andrena asteris, Adrena hirticincta, and Andrena nubecula. Solidago bicolor is also a larval host for the Maine native Synchlora aerata, the Wavy-lined Emerald Moth (aka the Camouflaged Looper). Deer and rabbit resistant.

Source: Van Berkum Nursery, grown from seed collected in New England

Image credits: Fritz Flohr Reynolds via Creative Commons through the North Carolina Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox; illustration from Wikimedia Commons