Verbesina alternifolia is a species of flowering plant in the family Asteraceae. It is commonly known as wingstem[2] or yellow ironweed.[3] It is native to North America.[2]
| Verbesina alternifolia | |
|---|---|
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| Wingstem in cultivation | |
Scientific classification 
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| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Clade: | Asterids |
| Order: | Asterales |
| Family: | Asteraceae |
| Genus: | Verbesina |
| Species: | V. alternifolia
|
| Binomial name | |
| Verbesina alternifolia Britton ex Kearney (L.)
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| Synonyms | |
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The name "wingstem" refers to the petioles of the leaves, which run down the stem and form raised ridges or "wings" along it.[4] The plant grows 3-8 feet tall with an unbranched stem until reaching the inflorescence at the very top.[5] Its yellow flower heads, which bloom in late summer through early fall, are 1-2 inches wide and consist of up to 10 bright yellow ray florets that are angled downward, each bearing a notch at the end, as well as a spherical cluster of tubular yellow disk florets in the center.[6]
Ecology
editThis plant grows in fertile, moist low-lying areas, such as near creeks and in open bottomland woods, usually not far from a body of water or woodland.[5][7] The tubular disk florets in the center of every flower head attract long-tongued bees such as bumblebees and butterflies, while being less attractive to shorter-tongued insects like wasps and flies.[5]
Verbesina alternifolia is sometimes considered weedy.[8] It thrives and competes well in both disturbed and less disturbed habitats, and often forms colonies by spreading vegetatively from rhizomes.
The seeds are attractive food for birds.[9] The foliage is not preferred food by deer and other herbivores.[5][10]
As host plant
editIt is a larval host to the gold moth (Basilodes pepita) and the silvery checkerspot (Chlosyne nycteis).[11]
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Close-up of Verbesina alternifolia stem showing wings -
Mature flower heads -
Detail of immature seed head
References
edit- ^ NatureServe (1 September 2023). "Verbesina alternifolia". NatureServe Network Biodiversity Location Data accessed through NatureServe Explorer. Arlington, Virginia: NatureServe. Retrieved 20 September 2023.
- ^ a b NRCS. "Verbesina alternifolia". PLANTS Database. United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). Retrieved 2018-04-07.
- ^ "Verbesina alternifolia - Plant Finder". www.missouribotanicalgarden.org. Missouri Botanical Garden. Retrieved 18 January 2019.
- ^ "Us Wildflower- Wingstem, Yellow Ironweed". uswildflowers.com.
- ^ a b c d Hilty, John (2020). "Wingstem (Verbesina alternifolia)". Illinois Wildflowers. Retrieved 21 September 2023.
- ^ "Know Your Natives- Yellow wingstem". anps.org. Arkansas Native Plant Society. 13 November 2015.
- ^ Carter, Richard; Morris, M. Wayne; Bryson, Charles T. (1990). "Some Rare or Otherwise Interesting Vascular Plants from the Delta Region of Mississippi". Castanea. 55 (1): 43.
- ^ "Verbesina alternifolia". missouribotanicalgarden.org.
- ^ "Verbesina alternifolia". missouribotanicalgarden.org.
- ^ "Know Your Natives- Yellow wingstem". anps.org. Arkansas Native Plant Society. 13 November 2015.
- ^ The Xerces Society (2016), Gardening for Butterflies: How You Can Attract and Protect Beautiful, Beneficial Insects, Timber Press.
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