Vascular Plants of North Carolina
Account for Sweet Indian-plantain - Hasteola suaveolens   (L.) Pojarkova
Members of Asteraceae:
Only member of Hasteola in NC.
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Section 6 » Order Asterales » Family Asteraceae
Author(L.) Pojarkova
DistributionSouthern Mountains only. Known in NC only from Buncombe, Henderson, and Transylvania counties.

MA to MN, south to southwestern NC, TN, and southeastern MO.
AbundanceVery rare, and declining. The NCNHP lists only six records, with four historical. The only known extant sites -- 1) discovered fairly recently by Ed Schwartzman at Jackson Park in Henderson County, and 2) by Aster Ayer in Transylvania County. The State Status has been upgraded to Endangered.
HabitatBottomlands, floodplain forests, and streambanks. The Jackson Park site is a swamp forest with some openings.
PhenologyFlowering and fruiting August-October.
IdentificationPlants grow to about 3-4 feet tall, a single stem from broad, triangular, basal leaves. Stem leaves are reduced in size. The inflorescence is composed of several branches, forming a generally flat-topped array; heads are all yellowish white disk florets. The strongly triangular shape of the middle lobe of the leaves is quite obvious, especially on robust 3-4 foot tall plants in this species.
Taxonomic CommentsIn the past it has been treated in the genus Senecio or Cacalia. Treated as C. suaveolens in RAB (1968).

Other Common Name(s)Sweet-scented Indian-plantain, False Indian-plantain
State RankS1
Global RankG4
State StatusE
US Status
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