Solidago missouriensis
Nutt.
Prairie goldenrod, Missouri goldenrod
(c) tsc_wis, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)
(c) Annette Le Faive, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)
(c) Annette Le Faive, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)
What to Eat
Edible parts: Leaves
Young leaves can be eaten raw or cooked — added to salads or used as a potherb. A very good tea is made from dried leaves and dried, fully expanded flowers.
Where to Find It
It is a temperate plant. It grows in dry prairies. It suits hardiness zone 4.
Canada, North America, USA,
How to Identify
A perennial goldenrod reaching 1.2 m tall with 0.6 m spread, hardy to UK zone 7. Flowers July to September with seeds ripening August to October. Hermaphroditic flowers are insect-pollinated. Tolerates light sandy, medium loamy, and heavy clay soils (including heavy clay) across mildly acidic to mildly alkaline pH ranges. Grows in semi-shade or full sun and tolerates both dry and moist soil. Notable for attracting wildlife.
How to Grow
Succeeds in any moderately fertile moisture retentive soil in sun or semi-shade. Grows well in heavy clay soils. A rather greedy plant, it is apt to impoverish the soil. The plant attracts various beneficial insects such as ladybirds, lacewings and hoverflies to the garden, these insects will help to control insect pests in the garden.
Propagation: Sow seed in spring in a cold frame, barely covering it and keeping the compost moist. Prick out into individual pots when large enough to handle and grow on through the first winter in pots. Plant out into permanent positions in spring or early summer. Divide in spring or autumn; larger divisions can go straight into permanent positions. Smaller divisions are best potted up and grown on in a lightly shaded cold frame until well established, then planted out in summer.
Medicinal Uses
An infusion of the dried powdered herb can be used as an antiseptic.
Other Uses
Mustard, orange, and brown dyes can be obtained from the whole plant.
Wikipedia
Source ↗Solidago missouriensis is a species of flowering plant in the family Asteraceae known by the common names Missouri goldenrod and prairie goldenrod. It is native to North America, where it is widespread across much of Canada, the United States, and northern Mexico. It grows from British Columbia east to Manitoba, south as far as Sonora, Coahuila, Texas, and Mississippi.
Notes
There are about 100 Solidago species.
References (9)
- Beckstrom-Sternberg, Stephen M., and James A. Duke. "The Foodplant Database." http://probe.nalusda.gov:8300/cgi-bin/browse/foodplantdb.(ACEDB version 4.0 - data version July 1994)
- Facciola, S., 1998, Cornucopia 2: a Source Book of Edible Plants. Kampong Publications, p 42
- Jackes, D. A., 2007, Edible Forest Gardens
- J. Acad. Nat. Sci. Philadelphia 7:32. 1834
- Kermath, B. M., et al, 2014, Food Plants in the Americas: A survey of the domesticated, cultivated and wild plants used for Human food in North, Central and South America and the Caribbean. On line draft. p 828
- Kiple, K.F. & Ornelas, K.C., (eds), 2000, The Cambridge World History of Food. CUP p 1779
- MacKinnon, A., et al, 2009, Edible & Medicinal Plants of Canada. Lone Pine. p 342
- Plants for a Future database, The Field, Penpol, Lostwithiel, Cornwall, PL22 0NG, UK. http://www.scs.leeds.ac.uk/pfaf/
- World Checklist of Useful Plant Species 2020. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew
