Spermatophytes (seed plants): Angiosperms (flowering plants): Eudicots: Core Eudicots: Saxifragales
WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/24/22):
Astilbe biternata
FAMILY
Saxifragaceae
Go to FSUS key
Dig deeper at SERNEC, a consortium of southeastern herbaria.
Learn more about Appalachian False Goatsbeard from the Vascular Plants of North Carolina.
SYNONYMOUS WITH
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Astilbe biternata
FAMILY
Saxifragaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH Floristic Synthesis of North America. BONAP (Kartesz, 2021)
Astilbe biternata
INCLUDED WITHIN Flora of North America north of Mexico, vol. 8 (2009)
Astilbe biternata
INCLUDED WITHIN VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 094-07-001:
Astilbe biternata FAMILY Saxifragaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)
Astilbe biternata
COMMON NAME:
Appalachian False Goatsbeard, Appalachian Astilbe
To see larger pictures, click or hover over the thumbnails.
)
USDA-NRCS PLANTS Database / Britton, N.L., and A. Brown. 1913 pnd_asbi4_001_lvd
)
JK Marlow jkm120421_140
April Hendersonvlle County NC
Holmes Educational Forest
)
JK Marlow jkm070526_069
May Polk County NC
)
JK Marlow jkm070526_089
May Polk County
Black Cohosh on the left; False Goatsbeard on the right.
)
JK Marlow jkm090503_048
May Polk County NC
Terminal leaflets are acuminate and usually 3-lobed with a cordate base, per Vascular Flora of the Carolinas (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968).
COMPARE
compound leaves of woodland herbs, with toothed margins
)
JK Marlow jkm090503_064
May Polk County NC
)
JK Marlow jkm120517_908
May Yancey County NC
Blue Ridge Parkway
)
JK Marlow jkm140519_882
May Jackson County NC
Big Ridge Preserve
)
JK Marlow jkm230525_3441
May Haywood County NC
Blue Ridge Parkway
)
JK Marlow jkm240502_8947
May Jackson County NC
Big Ridge Preserve
Astilbe has a hairy upper stem, whereas Aruncus is smooth, per Wildflowers of the Southern Mountains (Smith, 1998).
)
JK Marlow jkm0506c_30
June Rutherford County NC
Chimney Rock Park
)
JK Marlow jkm090711_030
July Greenville County SC
Chestnut Ridge Heritage Preserve
)
JK Marlow jkm090711_034
July Greenville County SC
Chestnut Ridge Heritage Preserve
Fruit erect, lanceolate follicles, 0.15-.2" long, borne on a large panicle, per Wildflowers of Tennessee, the Ohio Valley, and the Southern Appalachians (Horn, Cathcart, Hemmerly, & Duhl, 2005).
)
JK Marlow jkm200717_6622
July Jackson County NC
Nantahala National Forest
Flowers in a pyramid-shaped, branching inflorescence held above the leaves, per Wildflowers of the Atlantic Southeast (Cotterman, Waitt, & Weakley, 2019).
)
JK Marlow jkm0308v_02
August Haywood County NC
Corneille Bryan Native Garden
Lateral leaflets ovate, elliptic, 3-lobed or lobed on one side, per Vascular Flora of the Carolinas (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968).
COMPARE
Cohosh, Doll's-eyes, and Goatsbeard
WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/24/22):
Astilbe biternata
FAMILY
Saxifragaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Astilbe biternata
FAMILY
Saxifragaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
Floristic Synthesis of North America. BONAP (Kartesz, 2021)
Astilbe biternata
INCLUDED WITHIN
Flora of North America north of Mexico, vol. 8
Astilbe biternata
INCLUDED WITHIN
VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 094-07-001:
Astilbe biternata
FAMILY
Saxifragaceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)
Astilbe biternata
175
Forb
Perennial
Habitat: cove forests, seepage slopes, boulderfield forests, per Weakley's Flora
Native to the Carolinas & Georgia
Common in Carolina Mountains, uncommon in GA Mountains, rare in Piedmont
CLICK HERE to see a map, notes, and images from Weakley's Flora of the Southeastern US.
LEAVES:
Complexly compound, with 2+ levels of pinnate and/or ternate compoundness
Basal & alternate
FLOWER:
Spring/Summer
White
Radially symmetrical
5 persistent sepals
5 petals (or petals absent in pistillate flowers)
8-10 stamens
Bisexual or unisexual
FRUIT:
Spring/Summer
A partly fused 2-locular capsule or separate as 2 follicles
TO LEARN MORE about this plant, look it up in a good book!
- Gardening with the Native Plants of Tennessee (Hunter, 2002) p110
- Guide to the Wildflowers of SC, 2nd ed. (McMillan, Porcher, Rayner, & White; 2022) p142
- Wildflowers of the Atlantic Southeast (Cotterman, Waitt, & Weakley, 2019) p217
- Wildflowers of the Eastern United States (Duncan & Duncan, 1999) p023
- Wild Flowers of NC, 2nd edition (Justice, Bell, & Lindsey, 2005) p103
- Field Guide to the Wildflowers of Georgia (Chafin, 2016) p311
- Wildflowers of Tennessee (Carman, 2005) p116
- Wildflowers of Tennessee, the Ohio Valley, and the Southern Appalachians (Horn, Cathcart, Hemmerly, & Duhl, 2005) p139
- Wildflowers of the Southern Mountains (Smith, 1998) p067
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