3. Solidago buckleyi Torr. & A. Gray
Pl. 238 a–c; Map
992
Plants with the
rootstock short and sometimes branched, not producing rhizomes. Stems 1 to
several, 40–120 cm long, erect or ascending, finely ridged, sparsely to
moderately pubescent with short, curved or occasionally stiff hairs, sometimes
only sparsely hairy toward the base, not shiny, not glaucous. Leaves chiefly
cauline, the largest leaves in the lower 1/3 of the stem, the basal leaves
absent at flowering. Basal and lowermost stem leaves with the blade 6–12 cm
long, 2–5 cm wide, variously 3–5 times as long as wide, oblanceolate to
elliptic or obovate, relatively thin, angled or tapered to a sessile or
short-petiolate base, angled or more commonly short-tapered to a sharply
pointed tip, the margins usually sharply toothed and hairy, the surfaces not
sticky or shiny, the upper surface glabrous or sparsely to moderately
short-hairy along the main veins, the undersurface moderately pubescent with
short (0.4–0.7 mm long) hairs along the main veins, with 1 main vein, the fine,
pinnate secondary veins relatively easily observed (these usually forming an
irregular network). Median and upper stem leaves 1–15 cm long, the uppermost
usually lanceolate to narrowly elliptic, otherwise similar to the lower stem
leaves. Inflorescences of axillary clusters grading into a narrow, racemose
panicle, the heads oriented in several directions when short ascending branches
are present. Involucre 4.5–6.0 mm long, the bracts in 3 or 4 unequal series.
Involucral bracts mostly narrowly oblong-lanceolate and sharply pointed at the
tip, appressed-ascending or more commonly at least the outermost involucral
bracts loosely ascending or with the tips somewhat spreading to recurved, the
thin, white to yellowish white margins hairy, the outer surface glabrous or
more commonly sparsely to moderately hairy, the hairs minute and sometimes
gland-tipped, with a poorly defined, green central region toward the tip, this
tapered abruptly to the midvein above or below the bract midpoint, the midvein
usually noticeably thickened. Receptacle naked. Ray florets 6–9, the corollas
3.5–5.0 mm long, yellow. Disc florets 8–15, the corollas 4–5 mm long, the lobes
0.9–1.5 mm long, yellow. Pappus 4–5 mm long, a few of the bristles often
slightly thickened toward the tip. Fruits 2–3 mm long, narrowly obovoid,
glabrous at maturity. September–October.
Scattered in the
Ozark and Ozark Border Divisions, and also on Crowley’s Ridge (Missouri to
Arkansas east to Indiana, Kentucky, and Alabama). Glades, bases, ledges, and
tops of bluffs, mesic to dry upland forests, and savannas; also roadsides and
open, disturbed areas.
Steyermark
(1963) retained this species as doubtfully distinct from S. petiolaris,
based on the presence of apparently intermediate plants in Missouri. Cronquist
(1980) mentioned S. buckleyi following his treatment of S. petiolaris
but did not formally treat it for the southeastern United States, stating that its
taxonomic position was uncertain. Nesom (1990d) studied a large series of
herbarium specimens of the S. petiolaris complex and provisionally
maintained S. buckleyi as a distinct species. However, he noted
differences between the eastern populations that have been called S.
buckleyi (on which the name originally was based) and the Ozarkian
populations, speculating that the two sets of populations may represent
separate, morphologically cryptic taxa. As had earlier workers, Nesom concluded
that more detailed population-level studies were needed to clarify the taxonomy
of the complex.