Wildflower Wednesday: Chrysogonum virginianum

Chrysogonum virginianum is a eastern US native known for both it's foliage and flowers.

sends out long, above-ground stolons that touch down and take root

Chrysogonum virginianum is a long blooming, great little native Asteraceae ground-cover with semi-evergreen foliage and golden flowers. You'll find it happiest in woodland gardens that have good drainage and base soil. Naturally occurring plants are found in bright filtered light along forest edges and clearings. Expect it to be vigorous, it is after all a ground cover.

February

 It's been in my garden for at least a decade and is very much at home between the large stepping stones on the path to the front door and in the adjacent bed. It flowers every spring and doesn't seem to mind a bit of foot traffic every now and then.

Green and Gold blooms early in my Zone 6b/7a garden; a few flowers will open in mid-March, but, April is when it pops. Then all at once the small golden flowers are waving above the green fuzzy leaves as if they're saying come on pollinators here I am.

The early bloom provides nectar for visiting bees and butterflies.

 Chrysogonum virginianum is not just another yellow composite flower. It's a charmer that wends its way through native sedges, huecheras, Spigelia marilandica, ferns and mayapples. It can dance with Phlox pilosa or ramble over a small boulder. The golden star flowers have five slightly-notched, yellow petals and a center of yellow disk flowers. The bright green leaves are ovate, with crenate (rounded teeth) margins. The leaves, stems and stolons are quite hairy or fuzzy.

a tuft of disk flowers surrounded by 5 ray florets that are toothed on the ends

I recommend Green and Gold as an alternative for invasive thugs like Winter creeper (Eonymous fortunai), Creeping Jenny (Lysimachia nummularia) and Vinca minor.  I wish big box stores and independent garden centers sold it instead of non-native thugs. Having mentioned thuggishness, please, remember, this native is a ground cover, so don't expect it to stay put, it will travel.

typical asteraceae's individual flowers

Good reasons to consider planting Green and Gold in your garden.

• Beautiful groundcover for shady area
• Long bloom time
• Does well in a rain garden
• Will naturalize
• Lovely planted along the edge of a woodland path
• Good for planting at the base of native shrubs
• Easy to grow and maintain
• Nectar source for early visiting pollinators

planted with Heuchera

The Essentials

Common Name: goldenstar, Green and Gold
Type:  rhizomatous, low-growing perennial; Evergreen or semi-evergreen
Family: Asteraceae
Zone: 5 to 9
Distribution
USA: AL , DC , FL , GA , KY , LA , MD , MS , NC , NY , OH , PA , SC , TN , VA , WV
Native Habitat: Woodlands, dappled sun
Size: 4-6 inches high
Bloom Time: Late March, April, May and possible rebloom in the fall. If you're gardening in its northern zone you might have summer blooms, but it's too hot in Middle TN to bloom all summer. In a wet, cool autumn there might be repeat blooms.
Bloom: Yellow
Sun: Part shade to full shade. If you want to plant it in the sun make sure it is well watered during dry summers.
Water: Medium with good drainage. Once it's established it should be fairly drought tolerant.
Maintenance: Low
Suggested Use: Ground Cover, Naturalize, Rain Garden
Tolerates: Deer, Shade, Drought
Companion planting: Dwarf crested iris (Iris cristata),  Blue wood sedge (Carex flaccosperma),  Christmas Fern (Polystichum acrostichoides), Hairy Alumroot (Heuchera villosa), Ohio spiderwort (Tradescantia ohiensis and Blue-stem goldenrod (Solidago caesia)or what ever combination of plants that  need a spot of golden star beauty.

Even though it's a spring bloomer Green and Gold is an honorary member of the Clay and Limestone Rough and Tumble Wildflower club!

Take a chance on Golden star, I've never regretted planting it.
xoxogail


Thank you for stopping by and welcome to Clay and Limestone's Wildflower Wednesday celebration. WW is about sharing and celebrating wildflowers from all over this great big, beautiful world. Join us on the fourth Wednesday of each month. Remember, it doesn't matter if they are in bloom or not; and, it doesn't matter if we all share the same plants. It's all about celebrating wildflowers. Please leave a comment when you add your url to Mr Linky.



Gail Eichelberger is a gardener and therapist in Middle Tennessee. She loves wildflowers and native plants and thoroughly enjoys writing about the ones she grows at Clay and Limestone. She reminds all that the words and images are the property of the author and cannot be used without written permission.