The Original Mystery Plant

Photo by John Nelson

The mystery plant loves a rocky, hard- scrabble pasture. Horses and cows avoid it, and the mystery plant can grow crazy.

The mystery plant has a bitter or acrid taste, which makes sense why cows don't care for it. In fact, some say cows that eat this plant will produce bitter milk.

The leaves are narrow, thin, and needle- like. They are fragrant when crushed, but many people say they don't like the odor.

When in full bloom, and in large patches, the mystery plant makes a spectacular show. It's a member of the sunflower family, Asteraceae.

Up close, you can see the arrangement of tiny flowers congested into heads at the ends of the branches. A single head will have several dozen inconspicuous yellow disk flowers or florets on a rounded receptacle.

Eight or nine bright yellow, showy ray florets form a ring around the outside of the head toward the bottom. These rays are notched, or lobed, on their ends. The mystery plant can get as tall as two feet. It can bloom when it's just a few inches high, especially if it grows in rough terrain or when repeatedly mowed.

As the plant get older and taller, it tends to lose the lower leaves, which may remain attached to the stem for a while and turn brown. The plants have a bushy, branched upper stem.

This species is native to the Southeast and extends north to New England and west through Missouri and Texas. In South Carolina, it occurs in every county but is most common in the Coastal Plain and Piedmont. It has a considerable number of near relatives in the same genus, which usually get more attention as attractive wildflowers.

It doesn't just grow in pastures in the country. It commonly grows along sidewalks, around parking lots, or other disturbed places. It can grow in any sandy or gravelly place. It blooms like mad during the hottest and driest parts of the summer into autumn and occasionally during the coldest part of winter.

Answer to this week's mystery plant [Answer: "Bitterweed," "Sneezeweed," Helenium amarum]

Dr. John Nelson is the curator of the USC Herbarium. To learn more about the Herbarium, call 777-8196. The

department also offers free plant identification.

www.herbarium.org