Plants 100-300 cm (rhizomatous). Stems smooth to weakly striate (glaucous). Basal leaves: blades usually ovate or ovate-cordate, to 21 cm (bases truncate or subcordate), margins shallowly lobed or dentate (sinuses smooth). Cauline leaves: (abaxial faces pale green, glaucous) proximal petiolate, ± deltate, margins coarsely dentate; distal petiolate or sessile, smaller. Involucres (7.5-)8-10(-10.5) mm. Phyllaries (pale green) oblong, midveins not winged (tips obtuse to acute, sparsely papillate). Corollas white, usually with green, sometimes purple, 8-9.5(-13) mm. Cypselae fusiform or ellipsoid, 4-5 mm (brown or purplish, 8-10-ribbed); pappi 5-6(-7) mm (readily falling). 2n = 50, 52, 56.

Flowering Jul-Nov. Edges of woods, pastures, roadsides; 10-600 m; Ala., Ark., Del., Fla., Ga., Ill., Ind., Kans., Ky., Md., Mich., Minn., Miss., Mo., Nebr., N.J., N.Y., N.C., Ohio, Okla., Pa., S.C., Tenn., Va., W.Va., Wis.

Much like no. 2 [Cacalia muehlenbergii (Sch. Bip.) Fernald], and hybridizing with it; stem glaucous, terete or slightly striate; lvs pale and glaucous beneath, averaging smaller, proportionately longer, and more pointed (the lower triangular-ovate), with fewer and larger teeth, or merely shallowly lobed, the sinuses smooth; 2n=50-56. Woods and moist or rather dry open places; N.J. and Pa. to s. Minn., s. to Ga., w. Fla., and Okla. (Mesadenia a.)

Gleason, Henry A. & Cronquist, Arthur J. 1991. Manual of vascular plants of northeastern United States and adjacent Canada. lxxv + 910 pp.

©The New York Botanical Garden. All rights reserved. Used by permission.

From Flora of Indiana (1940) by Charles C. Deam

Infrequent to frequent throughout the state. It prefers dry, open woodland, especially clayey oak slopes. It has a varied habitat, however, ranging from the woodland to the moist prairie habitat.

Indiana Coefficient of Conservatism: C = 6

Wetland Indicator Status: n/a