E-Flora BC: Electronic Atlas of the Flora of British Columbia

Euthamia occidentalis Nutt.
western goldenrod (western goldentop)
Asteraceae (Aster family)

Introduction to Vascular Plants

Distribution of Euthamia occidentalis
Click here to view our interactive map and legend

Details about map content are available here
Click on the map dots to view record details.

Species Information

Click on the image below to view an expanded illustration for this species.

Illustration Source: The Illustrated Flora of British Columbia

General:
Perennial herb from a creeping rhizome, stems erect, glabrous throughout except for the rough-hairy margins of the leaves, 0.5-2.0 m tall.

Leaves:
Basal leaves lacking; stem leaves alternate, unstalked, lance-linear, 3-nerved, gland-dotted, up to 10 cm long and 1 cm wide, glabrous and sometimes glaucous; lower stem leaves soon deciduous.

Flowers:
Heads with ray and disk flowers, short-stalked in an interrupted, elongated inflorescence; involucres egg-shaped, 3-5 mm tall; involucral bracts with broadly sharp-pointed to long-pointed tips, 1-nerved, straw-coloured, sometimes green-tipped; ray flowers yellow, 15-30, usually 1.5-2.5 cm long; disk flowers yellow.

Fruits:
Achenes compressed, stiff-hairy; pappus of white, hairlike bristles.

Source: The Illustrated Flora of British Columbia

USDA Species Characteristics

Flower Colour:
Yellow

Blooming Period:
Late Summer

Fruit/Seed characteristics:
Colour: Brown
Present from Summer to Fall

Source: The USDA

Key to the Species and Taxonomic Notes

TAXONOMIC KEY TO EUTHAMIA

1. Inflorescence usually interrupted and elongate; plants glabrous and often glaucous; involucral bracts with long-pointed tips E. occidentalis

1. Inflorescence essentially flat-topped and compact; plants glabrous or hairy, never glaucous; involucral bracts obtuse to abruptly sharp-pointed, without long-pointed tips E. graminifolia

Habitat / Range

Moist river banks and lakeshores in the steppe zone; frequent in SC BC; E to AB and S to NE, AZ, NM and CA.

Source: The Illustrated Flora of British Columbia

Ecology

Ecological Framework for Euthamia occidentalis

The table below shows the species-specific information calculated from
original data (BEC database) provided by the BC Ministry of Forests and Range.
(Updated August, 2013)

Site Information	Value / Class
Site Information	Minimum	Average	Maximum
Elevation (metres)	847	1035	1140
Slope Gradient (%)	2	8	15
Aspect (degrees) [0 - N; 90 - E; 180 - S; 270 - W]	100	129	160
Soil Moisture Regime (SMR) [0 - very xeric; 4 - mesic; 8 - hydric]	4	4	6
Modal Nutrient Regime Class	C
Number of field plots species was recorded in:	5
Modal BEC Zone Class	IDF
All BEC Zones (# of stations/zone) species was recorded in:	BG(1), IDF(3)
Source: Klinkenberg 2020

Climate

The climate type for this species, as reported in the: "British Columbia plant species codes and selected attributes. Version 6 Database" (Meidinger et al. 2008), is not evaluated, unknown or variable.

Status Information

Origin Status	Provincial Status	BC List (Red Blue List)	COSEWIC
Native	S4S5	Yellow	Not Listed

BC Ministry of Environment: BC Species and Ecosystems Explorer, the authoritative source for conservation information in British Columbia.

Synonyms and Alternate Names

Euthamia californica Gandog.
Euthamia linearifolia Gandog.
Solidago occidentalis (Nutt.) Torr. & A. Gray

Taxonomic and Nomenclatural Links

Flora North America treatment for Asteraceae
Flora North America treatment for Euthamia occidentalis
Genetic information (NCBI Taxonomy Database)
International Plant Names Index
Taxonomic Information from the World Flora Online
Integrated Taxonomic Information System

Additional Range and Status Information Links

Burke Museum of Natural History (Washington State records)
CalFlora
Consortium of Pacific Northwest Herbaria records
Jepson Interchange
NatureServe Explorer
USDA

Additional Photo Sources

Images From CalPhoto
UT Austin's Native Plant Database
Google Image Search
Flickr Image Search

General References

Google Scholar Search
Family References
General Botanical References for BC

Recommended citation: Author, Date. Page title. In Klinkenberg, Brian. (Editor) 2020. E-Flora BC: Electronic Atlas of the Plants of British Columbia [eflora.bc.ca]. Lab for Advanced Spatial Analysis, Department of Geography, University of British Columbia, Vancouver. [Accessed: 2024-05-17 11:25:53 PM ]

Disclaimer: The information contained in the E-Flora atlas pages is derived from expert sources as cited in each section. This information is scientifically based. E-Flora also acts as a portal to other sites via deep links. As always, users should refer to the original sources for complete information. E-Flora BC is not responsible for the accuracy or completeness of the original information.