Field Thistle (Cirsium discolor)
Field Thistle (Cirsium discolor)
Cup Plant (Silphium perfoliatum)
Cup Plant (Silphium perfoliatum)
Cup plant is a strong supporter of prairie biodiversity. Its water-holding leaf cups and seeds draw in birds, while its abundant nectar and pollen support a wide array of native bees, butterflies, and beetles. The plant’s sturdy stems and late-season blooms provide critical structure and forage in restored prairies, wetlands, and riparian buffers. As a deep-rooted perennial, it also contributes to soil stabilization and carbon sequestration, making it a valuable ally in ecological restoration and climate resilience.
Cup plant is a native of eastern North America, including Wisconsin. It usually grows six to eight feet tall, bearing numerous two to three-inch, yellow flowers. Each flower head has 20 to 30 yellow rays and darker yellow disks. Leaves often more than ten inches long are joined at the stem to form a small cup. Cup plant thrives in moist, well‑drained soils along prairie edges, stream corridors, and floodplain openings, doing best in full sun but tolerating partial shade.
Sources:
Prairie Moon Nursery — Silphium perfoliatum
USDA PLANTS Database — Silphium perfoliatum
Flora of North America — Silphium perfoliatum
Illinois Wildflowers — Cup Plant
Wisconsin State Herbarium — Silphium perfoliatum
Meadow Blazing Star (Liatris ligulistylis)
Meadow Blazing Star (Liatris ligulistylis)
Meadow blazing star (Liatris ligulistylis) is a tall, showy prairie perennial, usually two to five feet high on slender, erect stems that may be green to reddish and lightly hairy. Its flower heads are one to about one and a quarter inches wide, each composed of thirty to one hundred pinkish‑purple disc florets. These heads form a loose raceme along the upper stem, giving the plant its feathery, thistle‑like appearance. Leaves are alternate and lance‑shaped, four to eight inches long and up to one and a half inches wide, with sparse white hairs and a smooth texture. Basal leaves are larger and more oblanceolate; upper leaves narrow and become sessile.
Meadow blazing star thrives in full sun and well‑drained soils—especially sandy, loamy, or rocky substrates. It is most common in prairies, meadows, and streambanks across the Midwest. Its nectar‑rich flowers are especially attractive to monarchs during late‑summer migration.
Source‑title list
Flora of North America – Liatris ligulistylis
USDA Plants Database – Liatris ligulistylis
Illinois Wildflowers – Meadow Blazing Star
Minnesota Wildflowers – Meadow Blazing Star
(SF)
Purple Giant Hyssop
Purple Giant Hyssop (Agastache scrophulariifolia)
Purple giant hyssop (Agastache scrophulariifolia) is a tall, native mint‑family perennial of eastern North America, usually reaching four to six feet. It grows in upright clumps on square stems that may show purplish tones and light hair. The flower spikes range from one to six inches long and carry many small tubular blossoms in pale purple to lavender. Each flower has a two‑lobed upper lip, a three‑lobed lower lip, and four stamens that extend beyond the corolla. Leaves are opposite, sharply pointed, and borne on short stalks. They are up to four inches long and two inches wide, with coarsely toothed margins and short hairs on the petioles.
Purple giant hyssop favors moist, sandy or loamy soils in partial shade. It grows along woodland edges, in thickets, upland woods, and disturbed floodplain margins. Because it is sensitive to competition, it often persists where light disturbance keeps surrounding vegetation open.
Source‑title list
Flora of North America – Agastache scrophulariifolia
USDA Plants Database – Agastache scrophulariifolia
Illinois Wildflowers – Purple Giant Hyssop
Minnesota Wildflowers – Purple Giant Hyssop
(SF)
Wild Cucumber
Wild Cucumber (Echinocystis lobata)
Wild cucumber is a native annual vine in the gourd family, common across Wisconsin in moist, sunny places such as streambanks, swamps, thickets, and roadside ditches. In late summer it becomes suddenly visible, draping trees and shrubs with pale, star‑shaped flowers that seem to float above the foliage. The plant germinates each spring after frost, rising on fleshy, grooved stems that can reach twenty to thirty feet. Its leaves are large and palmate, with three to five pointed lobes, arranged alternately along long petioles. From each leaf axil, three‑pronged tendrils curl outward and anchor the vine to nearby vegetation.
Flowering begins in mid‑summer. The yellowish‑white blooms are fragrant and borne in long racemes. Wild cucumber is monoecious: male flowers form showy clusters with six narrow petals, while female flowers are fewer and marked by a small, spiny ovary beneath the petals. Once pollinated, these ovaries swell into the plant’s distinctive fruit—a puffy green pod covered in soft spines. Though cucumber‑like in appearance, the fruit is not edible and may irritate skin.
By fall, the pods dry and turn brown. Each capsule contains four large, flat seeds—two per chamber—and splits open at the base to eject them forcefully. Gardeners who wish to collect seed often bag the pods before they mature. The plant grows readily in rich, moist soil and full sun, and can be started from seed once the soil warms. Its vines can cover arbors, fences, and walls with a temporary curtain of foliage and flowers, though its vigorous growth can overwhelm small shrubs and young trees. Because it self‑seeds freely, pulling young plants early in the season is the simplest way to keep it in check.
Sources:
Flora of North America – Echinocystis lobata
USDA Plants Database – Echinocystis lobata
Illinois Wildflowers – Wild Cucumber
Minnesota Wildflowers – Wild Cucumber
(SF)
Thinleaf Sunflower (Helianthus decapetalus)
Thinleaf Sunflower (Helianthus decapetalus)
Thinleaf sunflower (Helianthus decapetalus) is a native perennial of eastern and central North America, including Wisconsin. It usually grows three to six feet tall and often forms loose colonies through its rhizomes. The bright yellow flower heads are two to three inches across, each with eight to twelve rays around a brownish central disk. They appear in open clusters from late summer into early fall and draw a wide mix of pollinators.
The leaves are thin‑textured, lanceolate to ovate, and rough to the touch. They range from three to six inches long and one to three inches wide. Upper leaves are mostly opposite; lower leaves may shift to alternate. Stems are slender, smooth or lightly hairy, and branch near the top. Thinleaf sunflower favors partial shade to dappled sun and grows best in moist, well‑drained soils along woodland edges, thickets, and shaded slopes. Its late‑season bloom and colony‑forming habit make it a steady contributor to pollinator support in naturalistic plantings and restoration work.
Sources:
Flora of North America – Helianthus decapetalus
USDA Plants Database – Helianthus decapetalus
Illinois Wildflowers – Thinleaf Sunflower
Minnesota Wildflowers – Helianthus decapetalus
(SF)
Common Sneezeweed (Helenium autumnale)
Bottle Gentian (Gentiana andrewsii)
Sawtooth Sunflower (Helianthus grosseserratus)
Canadian Goldenrod (Solidago canadensis)
Canadian Goldenrod (Solidago canadensis)
Canadian goldenrod is a herbaceous perennial that usually grows two to five feet tall, sometimes reaching six feet in richer soils or sheltered edges. The stems are erect and generally hairy, though the lower portions can be less so. Even with those hairs, the stem feels smooth in the hand. When you run your fingers upward, it has a firm, even surface rather than the gritty drag found on tall goldenrod. The upper leaf surface behaves the same way. It may be a little rough from short hairs, but it isn’t abrasive. That smooth‑to‑lightly‑textured feel is one of the most reliable cues for Canada goldenrod in southern Wisconsin, holding steady across subspecies, soil types, and weather.
The flowering panicles are large, plume‑like, and often more than five inches long. Small yellow flower heads line the arching branches, giving the plant its familiar sweeping shape. Bloom time runs from late summer into early fall, and the species draws a wide range of pollinators — native bees, butterflies, beetles, and wasps.
Leaves are alternate, lanceolate to narrowly lanceolate, typically three to six inches long and up to an inch wide. Margins are sharply serrated. The upper surface is usually roughened by short hairs, while the underside is paler and may be sparsely hairy. Leaf hairiness varies among subspecies, which explains why some guides describe the underside differently. Even so, the tactile cue remains consistent: the leaves feel firm but not gritty.
Canadian goldenrod grows in many soil types but is most common in medium‑texture soils with moderate organic matter. It thrives in full sun and tolerates mesic to moderately dry conditions. You’ll find it in prairies, old fields, roadsides, rail corridors, and open meadows. It does occur along waterways, but it is not a species of consistently wet ground — that role belongs more to Solidago gigantea.
Sources:
Illinois Wildflowers – Solidago canadensis
Flora of North America – Solidago canadensis
USDA Plants Database – Solidago canadensis
Minnesota Wildflowers – Canada Goldenrod
(SF)
Cream Gentian (Gentiana alba)
Tall Boneset (Eupatorium altissimum)
Sources:
Flora of North America – Eupatorium altissimum
Wisconsin State Herbarium – Eupatorium altissimum
USDA Plants Database – Eupatorium altissimum
Illinois Wildflowers – Tall Boneset
Kansas Wildflowers and Grasses – Tall Boneset
Flat-top Aster (Doellingeria umbellata)
Sources:
Flora of North America – Doellingeria umbellata
Wisconsin State Herbarium – Doellingeria umbellata
USDA Plants Database – Doellingeria umbellata
Prairie Moon Nursery – Flat-top Aster
Illinois Wildflowers – Flat-topped White Aster
Jumpseed (Persicaria virginiana)
Sources:
Flora of North America – Persicaria virginiana
Wisconsin State Herbarium – Persicaria virginiana
USDA Plants Database – Persicaria virginiana
Illinois Wildflowers – Jumpseed
Minnesota Wildflowers – Jumpseed
Elm-leaf Goldenrod (Solidago ulmifolia)
Source list (with spaces between entries)
Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources – Endangered Resources Program
UW–Madison Herbarium – Wisconsin State Herbarium Species Accounts
Flora of Wisconsin – Solidago ulmifolia Species Page
USDA NRCS PLANTS Database – Solidago ulmifolia Profile
NatureServe Explorer – Solidago ulmifolia Conservation Status
Minnesota Wildflowers – Solidago ulmifolia Description
Illinois Wildflowers – Solidago ulmifolia Ecological Notes
Prairie Moon Nursery – Solidago ulmifolia Species Profile
Prairie Nursery – Elm-leaf Goldenrod Species Description
Tallgrass Prairie Center – Woodland and Savanna Plant Ecology
Butterflies and Moths of North America – Host Plant Records for Solidago Species
Virgin’s Bower (Clematis virginiana)
Stiff Sunflower (Helianthus pauciflorus)

Stiff Sunflower (Helianthus pauciflorus)
Stiff sunflower is a native perennial found in Wisconsin. Its late-summer blooms offer a rich nectar source for native bees, butterflies, and beetles, while its seeds provide food for birds and small mammals. As a rhizomatous perennial, it helps stabilize soil and form dense colonies that suppress invasive species, making it a valuable ally in prairie restoration. Its rough foliage and sturdy stems also offer shelter and nesting material for insects.
It can grow up to six feet tall. Most of the ones I've seen, though, are two to four feet tall. The flowers are yellow and measure 2 to 3-1/2 inches across. They have 10 to 25 petals (ray flowers) surrounding a usually purplish-brown center disk. The bracts are short, wide, and flattened, usually with a dull point at the tip and short hairs around the edges. The stems are bristly and turn reddish-brown with age. They are mostly naked and branching. The leaves are two to 10 inches long and 3/4 to 2-1/4 inches wide. They are typically shaped like the tip of a spear, with a very rough texture. The leaves are short-stalked to stalkless and have shallow, widely spaced teeth along the edges. Stiff sunflowers are are commonly found in dry or drying prairies, roadsides, and open woods. They prefer full sun and well-drained soils.
(SF)
Yellow Giant Hyssop (Agastache nepetoides)
Stiff Goldenrod (Solidago rigida)
Stiff goldenrod is a native perennial found across Wisconsin’s prairies, sand prairies, dry fields, and open savanna edges. It grows three to five feet tall and carries bright yellow flower heads in dense, flat-topped clusters. Individual flowers measure about 3/8 inch across, and the full inflorescence spans two to five inches. The leaves are thick, stiff, and somewhat leathery, with basal leaves reaching up to ten inches long and five inches wide. Lower stem leaves are oblong and can reach eight inches, while upper leaves are lance-shaped and stalkless.
Ecologically, stiff goldenrod is an important late-season nectar source for native bees, butterflies, hoverflies, and soldier beetles. Some specialist pollinators rely on goldenrod species exclusively. After blooming, the plant produces fluffy seeds that persist into winter, feeding goldfinches and other small birds. Its upright stems add structure to prairie and savanna habitats, offering perches and shelter for wildlife.
Its deep, fibrous roots help stabilize soil and improve structure, especially in degraded or disturbed areas. Stiff goldenrod supports the larvae of several moth species and contributes to overall insect diversity, though it is not a primary host for the familiar goldenrod galls seen on other species. Its tolerance for dry, sandy, and rocky soils makes it a resilient choice for restoration projects, biodiversity corridors, and formal plantings where ecological function matters.
Sources
Flora of North America – Solidago rigida
Wisconsin State Herbarium – Solidago rigida
USDA Plants Database – Solidago rigida
Prairie Moon Nursery – Solidago rigida
Illinois Wildflowers – Stiff Goldenrod



















