Silphium

Plant Characteristics

Lifespan:	⌛	perennial

Cultivation

Scientific Names

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Rosinweed (Silphium) is a genus of about 20 species of flowering plants in the family Asteraceae, native to eastern North America. They are herbaceous perennial plants growing to 0.5-4 m tall, with yellow (rarely white) flowerheads. The name of the genus comes from the Ancient Greek word for a North African plant whose identity has been lost, though we know its gum or juice was prized by the ancients as a medicine and a condiment.

Read about Silphium in the Standard Cyclopedia of Horticulture

Silphium (from the Greek name of an umbelliferous plant of northern Africa). Compositae. Rosinweed. Tall-growing hardy perennial herbs native of the United States which are grown for their rather large sunflower-like heads of flowers which, except in one species, are yellow. Leaves opposite, alternate or verticillate, often forming water-holding cups by perfoliation of the st.: heads many-fld.; involucre of thick, somewhat foliaceous bracts; ray-fls. or at least their ovaries in more than 1 series, fertile, and with elongated exserted deciduous ligules: achenes much flattened, falling free or only with the subtending bract.—About 25 species. Silphiums are of easy cult. in any good soil. They require full sunlight and are prop. by division or seed. CH The above text is from the Standard Cyclopedia of Horticulture. It may be out of date, but still contains valuable and interesting information which can be incorporated into the remainder of the article. Click on "Collapse" in the header to hide this text.

Cultivation

Species

• Silphium albiflorum A.Gray – White Rosinweed
• Silphium asteriscus L. – Starry Rosinweed
• Silphium brachiatum Gatt. – Cumberland Rosinweed
• Silphium compositum Michx. – Kidneyleaf Rosinweed
• Silphium glutinosum J.R.Allison – Sticky Rosinweed
• Silphium gracile A.Gray – Slender Rosinweed
  • Silphium radula Nutt. var. gracile (A.Gray) Clevinger
• Silphium integrifolium Michx. – Wholeleaf Rosinweed
• Silphium laciniatum L. – Compassplant
• Silphium mohrii Small – Mohr's Rosinweed
• Silphium perfoliatum L. – Cup Plant
• Silphium perplexum J.R.Allison – Old Cahaba Rosinweed
• Silphium pinnatifidum Ell. – Tansy Rosinweed
  • Silphium terebinthinaceum Jacq. var. pinnatifidum (Elliott) A.Gray
• Silphium radula Nutt. – Roughstem Rosinweed
• Silphium reverchonii Bush – Reverchon's Rosinweed
• Silphium scaberrimum Ell. – Roughleaf Rosinweed
• Silphium simpsonii Greene – Simpson's Rosinweed
• Silphium terebinthinaceum Jacq. – Prairie Rosinweed, Prairie Dock
• Silphium trifoliatum L. – Whorled Rosinweed
• Silphium wasiotense M.Medley – Appalachian Rosinweed

Sources: FNA, IPNI, NRCS, GRIN, ITIS, UniProt

Gallery

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External links

• w:Silphium. Some of the material on this page may be from Wikipedia, under the Creative Commons license.
• Silphium QR Code (Size 50, 100, 200, 500)