#smallanthus uvedalius

[continent-of-wild-endeavor]

Smallanthus uvedalia - Bear's foot, hairy/yellowflower leafcup

[vandaliatraveler]

Among the earliest and most spectacular sunflowers to bloom in Appalachia’s mesic to dry, open woodlands, bottomlands, and fields, hairy leafcup (Smallanthus uvedalius) is a tall, clump-forming perennial herb easily identified by its gaudy, palmately-lobed leaves, which are opposite and form small cups around the plant’s stout stems (thus the name leafcup). Composed of three major lobes with broadly-toothed edges, the large, rough leaves resemble bear paws, resulting in the plant’s other common name: bear’s-foot. Small clusters of elegant yellow flower heads emerge from the ends of the plant’s stems in mid-summer; a single plant can produce up to a hundred of them. The composite flower heads consist of a dozen or so ray flowers on the outside and 40 to 80 tube-like disc flowers on the inside. Hairy leafcup’s easily-accessible nectar attracts an enormous variety of bees, wasps, butterflies, and other insects. Native Americans used the plant’s roots as both a laxative and a stimulant. A hair tonic has even been produced from the roots. As you may have suspected from prior posts, I have a real soft spot in my heart for this rangy, flamboyant wildflower, whose riotous eruption of ray flowers in summer draws in winged organisms from every recess of Appalachia’s forests and fields in a whirring, buzzing, whizzing celebration of rebirth and renewal.