Vascular Plants of North Carolina
Account for Small's Goldenrod - Solidago pinetorum   Small
Members of Asteraceae:
Members of Solidago with account distribution info or public map:
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Section 6 » Order Asterales » Family Asteraceae
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AuthorSmall
DistributionPiedmont, Sandhills (uncommon), and most of the northwestern two-thirds of the Coastal Plain. One record for a Mountain county (Alleghany); a specimen from a high elevation in Watauga County at NCU has been determined to be this species, though the website editors are not quite convinced, at such an odd location.

A fairly small range -- northern VA to north-central SC.
AbundanceCommon to abundant across the eastern and central Piedmont, except scarce to absent in the western counties. Common to abundant in the northern Coastal Plain, south to Craven and Johnston counties; fairly common to common south to the SC line, except uncommon in the Sandhills. Absent in the coastal region. One of the most numerous composites in the Piedmont and northern Coastal Plain, easily found in most grassy places. Despite a small range, barely into four states, it is certainly deserving of its G5 and S5 ranks; why it doesn't range farther southward into GA and AL, for example, is a mystery.
HabitatDry pine-oak woodlands and openings, Longleaf Pine-oak-Wiregrass uplands, woodland edges, roadbanks, powerline clearings.
PhenologyFlowering and fruiting late June-September.
IdentificationSmall's Goldenrod is one of our earliest flowering goldenrod species, beginning in late June and generally in full flower after the Fourth of July. It is a slender species and its narrow, strongly arcing/curved, stem leaves attract attention. Stem leaves also have tufts of tiny leaves in axils. Lower stem and basal leaves are linear to narrowly lance-shape, untoothed, and straight or slightly curved. The inflorescence is rather triangular in shape. In SERNEC a number of specimens of S. juncea are misidentified and actually belong to pinetorum. The former is a much taller plant with broadly elliptical basal leaves. Biologists should be very familiar with this species in the Piedmont and most of the Coastal Plain, noted for its numerous quite narrow leaves.
Taxonomic CommentsNone

Other Common Name(s)Pineywoods Goldenrod
State RankS5
Global RankG5
State Status
US Status
USACE-agcp
USACE-emp
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B.A. SorrieMoore County, same data. MoorePhoto_natural
B.A. SorrieMoore County, 2014, disturbed longleaf upland off Fire Tower Road. MoorePhoto_natural
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