Spermatophytes (seed plants): Angiosperms (flowering plants): Eudicots: Core Eudicots: Asterids: Campanulids: Asterales
WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/24/22):
Baccharis halimifolia
FAMILY
Asteraceae__
Go to FSUS key
Dig deeper at SERNEC, a consortium of southeastern herbaria.
You may also want to check Trees, Shrubs, and Woody Vines of North Carolina
This is an evergreen to tardily deciduous, fairly bushy, 8-10' shrub. In October the branch tips of these shrubs are festooned with fluffy white fruiting clusters (whereas the rare B. glomuliflora has flower clusters scattered in the leaf axils along the stem). Read more at Vascular Plants of North Carolina.
SYNONYMOUS WITH
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Baccharis halimifolia
FAMILY
Asteraceae__
SYNONYMOUS WITH Floristic Synthesis of North America. BONAP (Kartesz, 2021)
Baccharis halimifolia
SYNONYMOUS WITH Flora of North America north of Mexico, vol. 19-20-21 (2006)
Baccharis halimifolia
SYNONYMOUS WITH VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 179-43-003:
Baccharis halimifolia FAMILY Asteraceae__
SYNONYMOUS WITH Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)
Baccharis halimifolia
COMMON NAME:
Silverling, Groundsel-tree, Consumption-weed, Sea-myrtle
To see larger pictures, click or hover over the thumbnails.
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USDA-NRCS PLANTS Database / Britton, N.L., and A. Brown. 1913 pnd_baha_001_lvd
)
JK Marlow jkm130128_162
January Spartanburg County SC
Leaves wedge-shaped, glaucous, pale green, with scattered teeth toward the apex, per Vascular Plants of North Carolina.
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Patrick D. McMillan pdmbangusti_halimi_stjoe
June Gulf County FL
Baccharis halimifolia is on the right (on left is B. angustifolia).
)
Gill Newberry gn10_b_halimifolia_male
October
Male flowers [pictured here] are less conspicuous than female flowers, per Trees of the Southeastern United States (Duncan & Duncan, 1988).
)
JK Marlow jkm071028_109
October Edgefield County SC
Sumter National Forest: Edgefield Ranger District
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Richard and Teresa Ware rtw_b_halimifolia_3
October
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Richard and Teresa Ware rtw_baccharis_halimifolia
October
The glomerules are grouped into terminal paniculiform inflorescences, per Weakley's Flora.
)
JK Marlow jkm061111_017
November York County SC
Field
One of the few woody members of the Aster family occurring in NC, per Wild Flowers of NC, 2nd edition (Justice, Bell, & Lindsey, 2005).
)
JK Marlow jkm061111_023
November York County SC
Field
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JK Marlow jkm181110_5736
November Georgetown County SC
Huntington Beach State Park
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JK Marlow jkm181110_5736b
November Georgetown County SC
Huntington Beach State Park
)
JK Marlow jkm231104_6493
November Horry County SC
Myrtle Beach State Park
)
JK Marlow jkm231104_6495
November Horry County SC
Myrtle Beach State Park
Involucres mostly in pedunculate glomerules; bracts imbricate, often purplish, per Vascular Flora of the Carolinas (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968).
)
JK Marlow jkm231104_6496
November Horry County SC
Myrtle Beach State Park
Female flowers with tufts of silky pappus bristles about 1cm long, per Forest Plants of the Southeast and Their Wildlife Uses (Miller & Miller, 2005).
)
Roxanna Martin rlm11710_wr_14
November Spartanburg County SC
Leaves egg-shaped, usually coarsely toothed, but upper ones sometimes entire, per Newcomb's Wildflower Guide (Newcomb, 1977).
)
Roxanna Martin rlm11710_wr_28
November Spartanburg County SC
Bristles become quite conspicuous as the tiny fruits at their bases mature, per Trees of the Southeastern United States (Duncan & Duncan, 1988).
)
Gill Newberry gn12_b_halimifolia_br
December
WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/24/22):
Baccharis halimifolia
FAMILY
Asteraceae__
SYNONYMOUS WITH
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Baccharis halimifolia
FAMILY
Asteraceae__
SYNONYMOUS WITH
Floristic Synthesis of North America. BONAP (Kartesz, 2021)
Baccharis halimifolia
SYNONYMOUS WITH
Flora of North America north of Mexico, vol. 19-20-21
Baccharis halimifolia
SYNONYMOUS WITH
VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 179-43-003:
Baccharis halimifolia
FAMILY
Asteraceae__
SYNONYMOUS WITH
Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)
Baccharis halimifolia
2043
Shrub
Perennial
Dioecious
Habitat: Fresh and brackish marshes, marsh borders, hammocks, moist abused land, roadsides, ditches, old fields, and a wide variety of disturbed areas, per Weakley's Flora
Native to the Coastal Plain of the Carolinas & Georgia
Common (rare in Mountains)
CLICK HERE to see a map, notes, and images from Weakley's Flora of the Southeastern US.
LEAVES:
Evergreen/Tardily deciduous
Simple
Alternate
FLOWER:
Summer/Fall
Disc: Yellowish; pappus bristles whitish
Rays: Absent
Inferior ovary
Unisexual
FRUIT:
Summer/Fall
Tan
Achene
TO LEARN MORE about this plant, look it up in a good book!
- Forest Plants of the Southeast and Their Wildlife Uses (Miller & Miller, 2005) p312
- Guide to the Wildflowers of SC, 1st ed. (Porcher & Rayner, 2001) p359
- Guide to the Wildflowers of SC, 2nd ed. (McMillan, Porcher, Rayner, & White; 2022) p507
- How to Recognize Shrubs (Grimm, 1966) p276
- Native Alternatives to Invasive Plants p083
- Native Shrubs and Woody Vines of the Southeast (Foote & Jones, 1989) p128
- Newcomb's Wildflower Guide (Newcomb, 1977) p442
- Trees of the Southeastern United States (Duncan & Duncan, 1988) p225
- Wildflowers of the Carolina Lowcountry (Porcher, 1995) p091
- Wild Flowers of NC, 2nd edition (Justice, Bell, & Lindsey, 2005) p261
- Field Guide to the Wildflowers of Georgia (Chafin, 2016) p058
- Woody Plants of the Southeastern US: A Winter Guide (Lance, 2004) p070
- Wildflowers of the Sandhills Region (Sorrie, 2011) p312
If a search such as "Carex leptalea var. leptalea" doesn't deliver the results you want, try "Carex leptalea".
Or, to minimize chances of a misspelling, try just "Carex le".
Less is more: If "pencil flower" doesn't deliver the results you want, try "pencil".