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Maryland Golden-aster

Chrysopsis mariana

Found in longleaf pine sandhills, dry pine flatwoods, dry forests and woodlands, roadsides, other dry habitats. Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Northern Tier edition What its natural habitat tells you

73
Strong

Native to Virginia. How scores work Is it native here?

Profile 100%

Height
1–2.5 feet
Spread
1–2 feet
Light
Full sun, Partial shade
Soil moisture
Somewhat dry to moist

Space about 1.5 ft apart from its recorded spread, about 44 per 100 sq ft. Enter your bed size for a count

Will it fit your yard?

At a glance

Life cycle
Biennial or perennial
Bloom
Summer and fall

Not yet recorded · Leaves

Recorded in 98 Virginia counties.

Natural habitats

Places it grows wild. Not a planting requirement. Each habitat page lists the plants and wildlife also found there.

1 of 5

Pine flatwoods

Wet Pine Flatwoods, Shaken Creek Preserve - typical shrub layer
Wet pine flatwoods with a shrub layer. Shown: Shaken Creek Preserve, Pender and Onslow Counties, North Carolina, a neighboring state.Wet Pine Flatwoods, Shaken Creek Preserve - typical shrub layer, Robert Thornhill, undated. CC BY 4.0. Source record.

Sandhills

Dry, deep-sand ridges with longleaf pine and turkey oak, kept open by fire.

Dry forests and woodlands

Forests and open woodlands on dry ridges and slopes, often oak or pine.

Forests and woodlands

Forest or woodland where the source does not say how moist or dry.

Roadsides, fields and disturbed ground

Ground opened by people: roadsides, old fields, pastures, fencerows and lots.

All habitats

Also found with this plant

Wildlife whose habitat models include habitats this plant grows in, in Virginia. Shared habitat, not food. 91 animals.

All wildlife of Virginia

Ecological relationships

Who uses this plant?

What these records mean

17CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including VA

Genus host records with ranges including VA · Heterotheca

  • Chloridea virescensTobacco Budworm Moth
  • Chlorochlamys chloroleucariaBlackberry Looper Moth
  • Cucullia alfarataCamphorweed Cucullia, Halloween Paint, Camphorweed Cucullia
  • Epiblema scudderianaScudder's Epiblema, Goldenrod Gall Moth
  • Eupithecia miserulataCommon Eupithacia, Common Pug
  • Feltia subgothicaSubgothic Dart
  • Feltia tricosaConfused Dart, Tricose Dart
  • Heliocheilus paradoxusParadoxical Grass Moth
  • Pleuroprucha insulsariaCommon Tan Wave
  • Ponometia semiflavaHalf-Yellow Bird-Dropping Moth, Half-Yellow Moth
Show all 17
  • Schinia arcigeraArcigera Flower Moth
  • Schinia lynxLynx Flower Moth
  • Schinia nubilaCamphorweed Flower Moth
  • Schinia saturataBrown Flower Moth
  • Schinia sirenAluring Schinia Moth
  • Spilosoma virginicaVirginian Tiger Moth, Yellow Woolybear Moth, Yellow Bear
  • Synchlora frondariaSouthern Emerald
Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)
37BeesSoutheastern regional records

Southeastern regional records · Heterotheca

Individual names are not available yet.

Noori, Seltmann & Orr 2026, A curated and integrated dataset for exploring global bee-plant interactions (GloBI), Zenodo, CC BY 4.0
22Specialist beesPollen specialists

Pollen specialists · Heterotheca

  • Andrena fulvipennis
  • Ashmeadiella bucconis
  • Colletes speculiferus
  • Colletes thysanellae
  • Dieunomia heteropoda
  • Dieunomia nevadensis
  • Hesperapis carinata
  • Melissodes coreopsis
  • Melissodes dentiventris
  • Melissodes desponsus
Show all 22
  • Melissodes druriellus
  • Melissodes menuachus
  • Perdita albipennis
  • Perdita bishoppi
  • Perdita boltoniae
  • Perdita consobrina
  • Perdita georgica
  • Perdita graenicheri
  • Perdita ignota
  • Perdita octomaculata
  • Perdita swenki
  • Perdita xanthismae
Smith, Bachelder, Russell, Morales, Mosher & Seltmann 2024, Bee-Specialization-Modeling v0.6.1 (specialist host table compiled from J. Fowler's pollen specialist bee lists), Zenodo, CC BY 4.0
—BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim

No records yet · Ants · Beetles · Flies · Adult butterflies / moths · Other wasps · Other insects

Growing and identification

Plant details

Family
Asteraceae
Hardiness
Zones 4a–9b
Soil pH
Acidic to neutral
Flower color
Yellow

Safety has not been reviewed for this plant; check toxicity and thorns before planting.

Growing sources and scope
Also known as

Heterotheca mariana; Maryland Golden aster; Maryland Goldenaster; golden aster; golden-aster

Conservation status

Virginia rankS5
Global rankG5
VA statusNot verified
Federal statusNot verified

Conservation source Global and federal source

In your garden

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Sources