About Goldenrods
Solidago spp.
The genus Solidago includes over 100 species wordwide, about 80 of which are indigenous to the Americas; Gray lists 56 species for northeastern North America. Over a dozen species are found in Jackson Park, and, as always when species abound, some specimens are readily identified with a particular species while others confound identification, either because characteristics of some species are similar or because a specimen represents a hybrid. As with the Asters, but to a lesser extent, Goldenrods have been subject to taxonomic debate and reclassification with the advent of DNA testing. Some species, for example, have been shifted from Solidago to the genus Euthamia.
Clicking on the links below will open images and some description of various species.