Late goldenrod

Solidago altissima, tall or late goldenrod, is a vigorous rhizomatous perennial herb in the family Asteraceae native to much of temperate North America and naturalized widely in Europe and East Asia. Plants typically grow 1–2 m tall from creeping rhizomes that form extensive clonal patches in old fields, prairies, roadsides, and meadow edges. The single, leafy stem is densely soft-pubescent, especially in the upper portion. Leaves are alternate, sessile or nearly so, narrowly lanceolate, 6–15 cm long, with three prominent parallel veins and serrate margins on the upper half; lower leaves wither by flowering time. The inflorescence is a large, plume-like pyramidal panicle of many small bright yellow heads borne on one side of recurved branches. Each head, only 3–4 mm long, contains nine to fifteen tiny ray florets surrounding a few yellow disc florets. Achenes are short and topped by a pappus of fine bristles, dispersed by wind. Flowering occurs from late summer into autumn.