Euthamia caroliniana (L.) Greene ex Porter & Britton
Slender goldentop, slender fragrant goldenrod, coastal plain flat-topped goldenrod
Kingdom | Plantae | Plants, but not fungi, lichens, or algae |
Subkingdom | Tracheobionta | Vascular plants—plants with a “circulatory system” for delivering water and nutrients |
Division | Magnoliophyta | Flowering plants, also known as angiosperms |
Class | Magnoliopsida | Dicotyledons—plants with two initial seed leaves |
Subclass | Asteridae | A large class that encompasses asters |
Order | Asterales | Flowering plants with a central disk flower and surrounding petals, like daisies |
Family | Asteraceae | The aster family, which also includes daisies and sunflowers; from the Greek ἀστήρ, “star,” for the star-shaped flowers |
Genus | Euthamia | Greek for “well-crowded,” from the dense flowerheads |
Species | caroliniana | “From the Carolinas” |
About plant names...
Slender goldentop, also known as coastal plain flat-topped goldenrod, is a North American native. It is not,
however, a true goldenrod, though it is often classified as such. For a comparison table of
goldenrods and similar species, see Solidago.
Identification: Plants are 10-39″ (25-100 cm) in height.
Stems are branched partway up, smooth, without a waxy bluish coating (technically, glabrous or glabrate, not glaucous). Leaves are linear, like grass blades, abundant,
and typically bent downward
or backward (deflexed). They are ⅞-2½″ (2.4-7 cm) long and 1/32-⅛″ (1-3 mm) wide,
rarely up to ⅛″ (6 mm) wide and smooth, especially at maturity. Leaves have resinous dots. The flowerheads are
flat-topped or rounded, often multiply layered, with tiny yellow flowers, blooming from Aug-Dec.
Some Euthamias are listed below. This genus is in taxonomic flux, so the names are
likely to change:
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8/25/2013 · Casalis State Forest, Elm Hill Rd, Peterborough, New Hampshire · ≈ 8 × 5″ (19 × 13 cm) ID is uncertain
7/31/2021 · Otter Brook Preserve, Harpswell, Maine · ≈ 11 × 7″ (26 × 18 cm)
8/25/2013 · Casalis State Forest, Elm Hill Rd, Peterborough, New Hampshire · ≈ 8 × 6″ (20 × 14 cm) ID is uncertain
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Leaves |
Linear, like grass blades, abundant, typically bent downward or backward (deflexed). ⅞-2½″ (2.4-7 cm) long and 1/32-⅛″ (1-3 mm) wide, (up to ⅛″ (6 mm)) and smooth. Leaves have resinous dots. |
Lance-shaped leaves contain 3 veins running along the length of the vein. Sometimes there is 1 or 5 veins, depending on leaf size. Leaves are 3-6″ (7.6-15 cm) × ⅛-⅝″ (3.2-15 mm), resembling grass blades, and attached directly to the stem ("sessile"). Leaves have resinous dots. |