Small woodland sunflower is a native wildflower in the aster family found in dry woodland areas or along roadsides in the eastern U.S.A. In NC it is found in all areas but primarily in the Piedmont and mountain regions. Small woodland sunflower is easy to grow in average, well-drained soils and tolerates moist to occasionally dry soil and full sun to partial shade. It is drought-tolerant once established. Deadhead the blooms to stimulate reblooming and prevent unwanted seeding. Divide plants as needed to control growth. It will grow 4-6 feet tall and 2-4 feet wide. The yellow flowers are showy in clusters with a long bloom season. Pollinators are attracted to the blooms and birds will eat the seeds. It spreads by rhizomes and reseeding. This plant is suitable for cottage gardens, naturalized and native gardens and rock gardens. It makes a great nectar plant for a butterfly garden as well. Insects, Diseases, and Other Plant Problems: Watch for aphids, cutworms, weevils, and moths. Potential diseases are rust, powdery mildew, leaf spots (Septoria, Alternaria), downy mildew, and fungal rots. More information on Helianthus .
Curated pairwise relationships between this plant and others in the library — who feeds
whom, who competes, who confuses the pests. Green reads as a good pairing, red as one to avoid.
No curated interactions recorded for this species yet.
Also noted by NC State
Related species the NC State Plant Toolbox flags for this plant — look-alikes to tell
apart, and plants that play a similar role in a planting. Ones we carry in the library are linked.
Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day) | Partial Shade (Direct sunlight only part of the day, 2-6 hours)
Soil texture
Clay; Loam (Silt); Sand
Soil pH
Acid (<6.0); Neutral (6.0-8.0)
Soil drainage
Good Drainage | Moist | Occasionally Dry
Available space
3 feet-6 feet
NC region
Coastal; Mountains; Piedmont
Mature size
Height: 4 ft. 0 in. - 6 ft. 0 in. | Width: 2 ft. 0 in. - 3 ft. 0 in.
Canopy layer
4 - Herbaceous (3-15 ft)
Form & Appearance
Habit / form
Erect; Spreading
Leaf color
Green
Leaf type
Simple
Leaf arrangement
Alternate; Opposite
Leaf shape
Lanceolate
Leaf margin
Serrate
Leaf feel
Rough
Leaf size
3-6 inches long, 1-3 inches wide
Hairs present
Yes
Leaf detail
Lance-shaped leaves 3 to 6 in. long and .8 to 2 in. wide, are mostly scabrous above, resin-dotted, entire or toothed. Undersides have scattered matted hairs. The lower leaves are opposite and upper leaves are alternate.
Flower color
Gold/Yellow
Flower form
Head
Flower shape
Radial
Flower size
1-3 inches
Flower detail
1-1.25 inch bloom with 5-7 rays around center disk flowers are both yellow. Occurs singly or in clusters. Blooms from July to October
Bloom time
Summer
Fruit type
Achene
Fruit detail
Achenes in clusters September to November
Stem color
Green; Red/Burgundy
Stem detail
Smooth reddish-green stems
Wildlife & Ecology
Native status
Native
Origin
Eastern U.S.A.
Distribution
AL , AR , CT , FL , GA , IL , IN , KY , LA , MD , MI , MN , MO , MS , NC , NJ , OH , PA , SC , TN , VA , WV
Wildlife value
Host plant for the American Painted Lady, Painted Lady and Spring Azure butterflies. Attracts bees, butterflies and birds. This is also a larval host plant that supports Silvery Checkerspot (Chlosyne nycteis). The Silvery Checkerspot has at least 1-2 broods in the north from June-July in the deep south and Texas, they have as many as 3-4 broods from May through September.
Attracts
Butterflies; Pollinators; Small Mammals; Songbirds