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Swamp Sunflower, Helianthus angusifolius

Photo Courtesy Toledo-Bend.com

Photo Courtesy Toledo-Bend.com

Swamp sunflower, Helianthus angustifolius, is a giant yellow exclama­tion point at the end of the growing season. In October, after the summer phlox is done and many perennials are winding down for the year, the North Carolina Botanical Garden's native plant border suddenly ex­periences a burst of sunny golden color in the form of this cheerful plant. This clump-forming native perennial will reach 6 or more feet tall by 4 feet wide, and when it is covered in blooms it is simply stunning.

Few perennials produce such a density of flowers. Though each individual head is approximately 2 inches across, much smaller than those of its relative the annual sunflower, the overall effect is pure color. For most of the growing season the plant is more subtle. With narrow dark green foliage and willowy stems it provides a nice backdrop for spring and summer bloomers. As its flowers fade the foliage often takes on a lovely red color. Another bonus is that the ripening seed heads are bird feeders that you don't have to fill!

Swamp sunflower is so named because it is most often found growing in moist areas. In the garden it is happy in wet to average soil and prefers full sun. This is a plant that responds well to garden conditions and is consider­ably larger and more floriferous than its wild siblings. I've enjoyed seeing it used as a specimen plant as well as in perennial borders and wet meadows. Late asters including New England and aromatic American-asters (Symphyotrichum novae-angliae and oblongifolium, respectively) make good companions. Kosteletzkya virginica jj Immaculate," which is a white cultivar of seashore-mallow, blooms later than the straight species and its height and coloring make it a fine complement to swamp sunflower.

Look for wild populations of swamp sunflower in the eastern United States ranging as far north as New York and as far west as Missouri and Texas. It is most commonly found growing in wetter sites such as swamps, marshes, and savannas.

For a free brochure of the 2007 NC Wildflower of the Year that contains a packet of swamp sunflower seeds and growing instructions, send a SASE to: 2007 WFOY, NC Botanical Garden, Box 3375, UNC, Chapel Hill, NC 27599.

(Article prepared by Chris Liloia, NC Botanical Garden. The Wildflower of the Year program is a joint effort between the NC Botanical Garden and the Garden Club of North Carolina, Inc. to promote the use of native plants in the home garden. Each year, a showy native perennial is chosen and seeds are distributed to interested gar­deners. Through this program attention is focused on native plant conservation and diversity and the message of "conservation through propagation. ")