Today we’ll step onto the prairie to talk about a plant which is prominent in the autumn landscape, the goldenrod (species of the genus Solidago.) While one goldenrod species may look like the next to the average person, taxonomists have identified around 100 species native to North America. The rest of the world can claim a grand total of one, a European species known as the Woundwort, so named for its supposed ability to cause wounds to heal rapidly. This is not to say that goldenrods are not common in Europe, in fact in some parts American imports have established themselves to the point of becoming noxious weeds. Approximately 38 species and subspecies are native to Wisconsin with about half of these common in Ozaukee County. Size of goldenrods varies from a few inches up to six feet or more.
Goldenrods have the notorious reputation of causing hay fever, which is undeserved since goldenrods have heavy sticky pollen and are insect pollinated, not wind pollinated. Their bloom time, though, overlaps the time when the pollen of ragweed, the actual culprit, sends its pollen into the wind, resulting in sneezing and puffy eyes for many unlucky recipients.
The beauty of goldenrods has been recognized by many gardeners, and they have even been designated the state flowers of Kentucky and Nebraska. But few are available from garden centers because of their undeserved reputation. Those which may be obtained are generally hybrids of the various species. Some of the better cultivars are ‘Golden Fleece’, ‘Fireworks’, ‘Golden Shower’, ‘Peter Pan’, and ‘Little Lemon.’ They like full sun or partial shade in well drained soil of average fertility. Ironically, many of the older hybrids of this predominantly American plant were bred in England in the 1940’s. Perhaps they are so common here that we take them for granted.
The generic name Solidago is a Greek word meaning ‘to make whole.’ Native Americans employed them for a variety of medicinal purposes. Chippewas used goldenrods for cramps, lung trouble, and for urinary problems. Delawares utilized them as a cure for diarrhea and for fever. Cherokees also made use of goldenrods to treat fevers, as well as for bladder and kidney ailments. Alabama Indians used roots of goldenrods to make a tea for treating colds, or would put a root in a tooth cavity to relieve a toothache. Houma Indians made a tea of the roots of field goldenrod to cure yellow jaundice, apparently because the yellow color of the flowers suggested it as a cure for a disease in which the skin turns yellow.
Settlers in New England found that the sweet goldenrod, Solidago odora, is valuable as a tea substitute. It has leaves with glands that produce an anise-like fragrance. It was the major ingredient in a substitute drink called liberty tea, used after the Boston tea party. Both flowers and leaves are used in making the drink, which is also known as mountain tea.
In addition, New Englanders made use of goldenrod galls, growths on the stems caused by the presence of eggs or larvae of insects that overwinter in the stems. At one time it was believed that rheumatism would be relieved if a gall with a live larva in it was kept on oneself.
Thomas Edison once invented a method for obtaining rubber from the leaves of goldenrods. However, like so many other good ideas, the process did not prove to be economically feasible. The Omaha Indians, on buffalo hunts far from their homes, would see goldenrods blooming and would say, “Now our corn is starting to ripen at home.” For us today, their golden blooms are only a sign that autumn is on its way.
The Cottage Gardener 