| Groundseltree is a fairly common evergreen large shrub or small tree of edges and waste places, especially in moist areas. It is quite showy when it flowers in the fall. Durham Co., NC 10/16/2008.
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| Female flowers have a bright, showy white pappus (the parachute of bristles that will later carry the seed on the wind). Durham Co., NC 10/16/2008.
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| Male flowers are not as showy. Durham Co., NC 10/16/2008.
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| Baccharis is dioecious — male and female flowers are borne on separate plants. In the photo at left, the yellowish-flowered plant at left is a male, the whitish-flowered one at right is a female. The only composite (member of the sunflower family) to reach tree size in North Carolina, Baccharis is more common towards the coast, but spreading further inland, especially along highways and railroad tracks. Wilson Co., NC 10/3/2004.
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| The small, thick, smooth leaves are distinctively shaped, slightly resembling Lamb's-quarters.
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| These are male flowers. Wilson Co., NC 10/3/2004.
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| The persistent white pappus of the female infructescences remains showy for months after the plants stop blooming. The long white pappus helps the seeds disperse by wind. Chapel Hill, NC 11/13/05.
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| The bark is unique, with fine and coarse intersecting ridges.
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More information:
Delaware Wildflowers
Noble Foundation
Trees of the Maritime Forest
USDA PLANTS database
Virginia Tech Dendrology
Recommended Tree, Shrub, and Woody Vine Identification Guides
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