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Key to Solidago, Key E: Key to "tall goldenrods" -- with 3-veined stem leaves dominant and secund paniculiform inflorescences [subgenus Pleiactila; section Unilaterales (in part)]

Asteraceae

Solidago

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1 Upper stem (above the midpoint, up to the branches of the inflorescence) glabrous.
  2 Plants to 20 dm tall; basal leaves never present; mid-stem leaves averaging 4-6× as long as wide; upper stem usually slightly to moderately glaucous as well as glabrous; [widespread]; [subgenus Pleiactilis, section Unilaterales, subsection Serotinae]
  2 Plants to 10 dm tall; basal leaves withering or not before flowering (if not, also keyed elsewhere), often with associated sterile offshoots with basal leaves; mid-stem leaves averaging 5-10× as long as wide; upper stem glabrous, green; [KY, TN, and MS westwards].
    3 Rootstock short and branched, not producing creeping rhizomes; ray flowers 5-8; receptacle lacking intercalated green bracts (resembling phyllaries) inward from the rays; mid and upper stem leaves usually lacking axillary fascicles of smaller leaves; [subgenus Pleiactilis, section Unilaterales, subsection Radulae]
    3 Rootstock producing creeping rhizomes; ray flowers 7-13; receptacle often with a few intercalated green bracts (resembling phyllaries) inward from the rays; mid and upper stem leaves usually with axillary fascicles of smaller leaves; [subgenus Pleiactilis, section Unilaterales, subsection Junceae]
1 Upper stem hairy (above the midpoint, up to the branches of the inflorescence), variously puberulent, strigillose to strigose, villous, or scabrous.
      4 Midstem leaf blades 1-4 (-5)× as long as wide, the base attenuated to a winged petiole (at least in leaves of the lower midstem(; plants 1-10 dm tall; [collectively in IL, MO, AR, and LA westwards, disjunct eastwards in KY, NC, SC, GA, and AL]
        5 Leaf margins coarsely serrate; midstem leaf blades mostly 1.3-2× as long as wide; leaf surfaces evenly short villous; [IL & MO south to AR]; [subgenus Pleiactilis, section Venosae, subsection Drummondiani]
        5 Leaf margins entire to finely serrate; midstem leaf blades mostly 2-4 (-5)× as long as wide; leaf surface vestiture appressed to scabrous; [subgenus Pleiactilis, section Unilaterales, subsection Radulae].
          6 Leaf surfaces with appressed (strigillose) hairs; upper stem vestiture densely strigose, the stems appearing grayish-green; rhizomes long-creeping, the plants forming clonal patches; [OK and nc. TX westwards and northwestwards]
          6 Leaf surfaces scabrous; upper stem vestiture scabrous to loosely puberulent, the stems appearing green or dingy green; rhizomes short (less commonly moderately creeping); [se. KS, OK, and TX eastwards]
      4 Midstem leaf blades 4-20× as long as wide, the base sessile and cuneate to rounded; plants 3-20 dm tall; [collectively widespread].
             7 Rays 2-8; midstem leaves 4-15 mm wide, mostly 6-20× as long as wide, either twisted at base or not.
               8 Larger mid-stem leaves lanceolate to narrowly elliptic, 7-10 cm long, 10-15 mm wide; leaves not twisted; [KY and s. IN]; [subgenus Pleiactilis, section Unilaterales, subsection Canadensae]
               8 Larger mid-stem leaves linear to lance-linear, 2-9 cm wide, 2-7 (-10) mm wide; leaves either twisted at base or not; [either OK and westwards, or Coastal Plain from VA to FL west to TX and AR].
                 9 Leaves 4-9 cm long, 4-5 mm wide; [inland provinces, OK and westwards]; [subgenus Pleiactilis, section Unilaterales, subsection Radulae]
                 9 Leaves 2-7 cm long, 2-7 (-10) mm wide; [Coastal Plain, VA to FL west to TX and AR]; [subgenus Pleiactilis, section Unilaterales, subsection Tortifoliae]
             7 Rays 4-17 (-24); midstem leaves 5-30 mm wide, 4-12× as long as wide, not twisted at base.
                   10 Midstem leaves mostly 8-12× as long as wide.
                     11 Rays 10-15; [wet pine savanna and marsh habitats, Coastal Plain of NC, SC, GA, FL, AL, and MS]; [subgenus Pleiactilis, section Unilaterales, subsection Tortifoliae]
                     11 Rays 7-11; [riverscour habitats, inland provinces of PA, MD, DC, VA, WV, IN, KY, TN]; [subgenus Pleiactilis, section Unilaterales, subsection Canadensae]
                   10 Midstem leaves mostly 4-6× as long as wide; [subgenus Pleiactilis, section Unilaterales, subsection Canadensae].
                       12 Mid-stem leaves serrate, the teeth 3-8 (-10) per side, the largest > 1.5 mm long; involucres 1.7-2.5 (-3.0) mm high.
                       12 Mid-stem leaves entire to serrulate, the teeth usually 0-6 per side (up to 14); involucres (2.5-) 3-4.5 mm high.
                            14 Stem densely and closely villous-tomentose; leaves densely and evenly short pilose above and beneath; [western]
                            14 Stem short pilose to puberulent; leaves usually noticeably less hairy above than beneath and often darker colored above, with ascending-appressed hairs on the upper surfaces; [collectively widespread].
                              15 Upper surface of the leaves moderately to densely pubescent with short, curved to spreading hairs; [western]
                              15 Upper surface of the leaves sparsely to moderately roughened with minute bulbous-based hairs (stouter and shorter than the hairs on the lower surface), or glabrous except along the veins; [collectively widespread].
                                16 Inflorescence broad; upper stem leaves not reduced in size relative to the mid-stem leaves; [broadly eastern]

Key to Solidago, Key I: Key to a diversity of goldenrods with basally disposed leaves and paniculiform inflorescences with heads secund on the branches
[subgenus Nemorales; and subgenus Pleiactila, sections Argutae, Venosae, Maritimae, and Unilaterales)]

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1 Basal and lower stem leaves petiolate with a cordate or subcordate blade and/or a cordate-clasping petiole; [subsection Argutae].
  2 Pappus > ½× as long as the disc corollas; rays 1-3
  2 Pappus < ¼× as long as the disc corollas; rays 3-6
1 Basal and lower stem leaves with cuneate leaf blades and petioles not cordate-clasping (though leaves may have petioles which sheath the stem).
    3 Blades of lower leaves ovate to elliptic to oblanceolate, their bases truncate, abruptly tapering, or gradually tapering to petiole; lower leaves including petioles mostly less than 4× as long as wide (sometimes longer in S. brachyphylla with densely puberulent leaf surfaces and stems, and in S. boottii and S. tarda with blades sharply serrate and heads lacking phyllary-like bracts interior to ray florets); [subsection Argutae].
      4 Leaves either definitely scabrous or moderately to densely soft-villous or puberulent.
        5 Leaves scabrous on the upper surface.
          6 Involucre (2.5-) avg. 3.9 (-6.5) mm high; basal and lower stem leaves 8-30 cm long, 4-10 cm wide, mostly 2-3× as long as wide; upper stem leaves few, somewhat reduced; disc florets averaging 11.8 per head; [Mountains, Interior Low Plateau, rarely Piedmont, and Coastal Plain only from DE northwards]
          6 Involucre (3.5-) avg. 6.1 (-8.8) mm high; basal and lower stem leaves 6-24 cm long, 2-6 cm wide, mostly 3-5× as long as wide; upper stem leaves many, strongly reduced; disc florets averaging 9.3 per head; [Coastal Plain and very rarely lower Piedmont and AL Mountains]
        5 Leaves moderately to densely soft-villous or puberulent.
             7 Leaves soft-villous; rays 7-12; flowering May-Jun; [Coastal Plain of e. NC and e. SC]
             7 Leaves puberulent; rays 0 (-2); flowering Sep-Nov; [SC (NC?) south to FL and AL]
      4 Leaves either glabrous (or nearly so) or strigose or strigillose.
                 9 Plants with slender, stoloniferous rhizomes (in addition to the main, more deeply-seated rhizomes)
                   10 Upper stem leaves quickly reduced in size compared to the lower, ascending or appressed; basal and lower stem leaves elliptic to obovate (rarely ovate), acute or obtuse, with narrowly attenuate bases; [LA, TX, AR, and OK]
                   10 Upper stem leaves gradually reduced in size, ascending to spreading; basal and lower stem leaves mostly ovate, acute to acuminate, with truncate to obtuse bases; [NJ south to AL]
                       12 Basal leaves cuneate to rounded at the base; leaves of normal herbaceous texture.
    3 Blades of lower leaves oblanceolate to narrowly ovate, gradually tapering to petiole; lower leaves including petioles mostly more than 4× as long as wide (sometimes shorter in S. juncea with at least a few phyllary-like bracts interior to ray florets).
                              15 Petiole bases of basal and lower stem leaves not clasping or sheathing the stem; [of mesic or dry habitats].
                                16 Stems obviously densely and loosely puberulent; [subsection Nemorales]
                                  17 Pappus bristles usually exceeding the length of the ray floret corolla tubes; basal and lower stem leaves narrowly oblanceolate to nearly linear; leaf margins entire or with minute teeth only near the tip; disc corolla lobes (0.6-) 0.8-1.5 mm long; achenes moderately hairy; [mainly western in our region]
                                  17 Pappus bristles usually not (or barely) exceeding the length of the ray floret corolla tubes; basal and lower stem leaves oblanceolate to narrowly obovate; leaf margins crenate-serrate through half or more of their length; disc corolla lobes 0.5-0.9 (-1.0) mm long; achenes sparsely hairy; [widespread in our region]
                                    18 Rhizomes thick, short; stem leaves not 3-nerved; [collectively of various habitats].
                                         20 Upper stem leaves spreading or reflexed, with axillary fascicles of reduced leaves; [east of the Blue Ridge]
                              15 Petiole bases of basal and lower stem leaves sheathing the stem; [seasonally saturated habitats]; [subsection Maritimae].
                                           21 Leaves somewhat fleshy, the stem leaves reduced but not very markedly so; inflorescence almost always with lower branches strongly recurved with secund heads; [usually of maritime or otherwise saline habitats, rarely in nontidal marshes or swamps].
                                             22 Involucres 3-4 mm high; rays 7-11; disc flowers ca. 10-16; leaf margins ciliolate; larger leaves < 3 cm wide; [MA south to FL, west to TX and beyond]
                                           21 Leaves not fleshy (rarely so in S. stricta of near coastal situations), the stem leaves much reduced relative to the basal; inflorescence showing only relatively weak tendency to recurved branches with secund heads; [inland habitats, except rarely S. stricta].
                                               23 Ray flowers averaging 3; disc flowers averaging 8; heads 6-7 mm tall; [seepage over sloping rock on granitic domes, of sw. NC, nw. SC, and ne. GA]
                                               23 Ray flowers averaging 5; disc flowers averaging 6; heads 4-5 mm tall; [peaty bogs and fens, w. NC and e. TN northward].
                                                 24 Basal leaves 0.7-2.5 cm wide; stem leaves linear or lanceolate (the lower cauline leaves 0.7-3 cm wide); disc flowers 9-15; [PA and WV (?) northwards]
                                                 24 Basal leaves 3-8 cm wide; stem leaves oblong-lanceolate (the lower cauline leaves 3-8 cm wide); disc flowers 4-8; [scattered in NC and TN; less sparsely distributed northwards]