Stiff goldenrod
Solidago rigida · Asteraceae
Flat-topped heads of rich yellow, unlike the plumes of other goldenrods, on stiff stems with broad, felted, grey-green leaves.
- Size
- 4 ft tall, 24 in wide
- Zones
- 3 to 9
- Light
- Full sun
- Flowers
- Mid August to late September
- Pets
- Not checked
- Job in a bed
- Drift
A bed built around stiff goldenrod
The planner designed this bed around stiff goldenrod when this page was made: a 12 × 6 ft (3.7 × 1.8 m) cottage garden in zone 6, full sun. It chose the other plants from the 715 that suit those conditions and its dry soil, and says below why stiff goldenrod stands where it does.
The plants
- 1 Stiff goldenrod × 3, yellow
- 2 Moor grass 'Greenlee' × 3, tan
- 3 Cheddar pinks 'Firewitch' × 13, pink
- 4 Gloriosa daisy 'Indian Summer' × 5, yellow
- 5 Dwarf English boxwood × 1, dark green leaves
- 6 English lavender 'Hidcote' × 3, purple
- 7 Schubert's allium × 3, pink
- 8 Hyacinth × 10, blue
Why this plant
- The only bold leaves here. The rest are fine and medium. A change of leaf keeps plants distinct when nothing is in flower.
- The only flat plates. The others are spires, daisies and globes. Shape reads at a distance, where colours blur.
Why here
- Anchors a back corner. At 4 ft it is the tallest plant here, and the tallest close the ends of the bed, where they stand in front of nothing.
- A step in the back row. Next to English lavender 'Hidcote' (18 in): no two neighbours there are the same height, so the back steps up and down like a skyline.
- 3 plants in one group. Massed, one kind reads as a single shape. Scattered, it would look spotty.
Why now
- In flower for 7 weeks. From mid August to late September.
- In company. With moor grass 'Greenlee' and gloriosa daisy 'Indian Summer' in mid August: 3 kinds at once.
Planned as a cottage garden: 28 of the 28 plants (100%), bulbs aside, stand alone or in groups of no more than five, small enough for the kinds to mingle. The back corners are held by stiff goldenrod and gloriosa daisy 'Indian Summer', the tallest plants on the plan. Cheddar pinks 'Firewitch' repeats along the bed to tie it together.
The planner's own design check: 11 Excellent, 6 Good. It flags one thing to watch: Nothing on this plan is highly poisonous or an aggressive spreader.
Open this bed in the planner Change its size, the sun or the style, move plants about, or swap one for another.
Where stiff goldenrod goes in a border
At 4 ft it belongs at the back of a bed. In the planner's ten height classes it is moderately tall (3 to 4 ft).
Its job: drift. Planted in a small group of three or five, and repeated further along in the other number.
A prairie goldenrod with good foliage and a clear outline. It stands rigidly upright in poor soil and colours rose-red in autumn. Monarchs feed on it during migration.
- Prairie and meadow planting
- Migrating monarch butterflies
- Dry, poor soil
What to plant with stiff goldenrod
Plants recorded as good partners for it, and what each pairing does:
- Little bluestem: its blue-green leaves are a setting for the flowers, before and after; fine leaves against its bold ones; happy in the same dry soil.
- Aromatic aster 'October Skies': blue against yellow, opposite each other on the colour wheel, in flower together for two weeks; fine leaves against its bold ones; low enough (20 in) to stand in front of it.
- Big bluestem: purple against yellow, opposite each other on the colour wheel, in flower together for seven weeks; fine leaves against its bold ones.
Questions about stiff goldenrod
Does stiff goldenrod need sun or shade?
Stiff goldenrod grows in full sun (6 or more hours of direct sun a day).
It wants dry, sharply drained soil, on the lean side, with no feeding, and little watering once settled.
What zones does stiff goldenrod grow in?
USDA zones 3 to 9. It is hardy to zone 3, which means it survives winter nights down to about −30 °F (−34 °C).
Gardening in Canada? Use the USDA zone for your town: Canada's own zone map uses different numbers.
When does stiff goldenrod flower in my zone?
In zone 5 it flowers mid August to late September. As a summer flower it moves about half a week for every zone: earlier where it is warmer.
| Zone 3 | Late August to late September |
|---|---|
| Zone 4 | Late August to late September |
| Zone 5 | Mid August to late September |
| Zone 6 | Mid August to late September |
| Zone 7 | Early August to late September |
| Zone 8 | Early August to late September |
| Zone 9 | Early August to late September |
Worked out from Hopkins' bioclimatic law: spring arrives about four days later for each degree of latitude north, and one zone is roughly two degrees. A warm spring or a cold one moves any garden two weeks either way.
How far apart should stiff goldenrod be planted?
18 in (45 cm) apart, from the middle of one plant to the middle of the next. That is a little closer than its full width of 24 in (60 cm), so a group knits into one patch.
It grows 4 ft (120 cm) tall. Give it the full distance from anything taller, or it will lean out towards the light.
How many stiff goldenrod plants do I need?
At 18 in apart, set out in staggered rows:
- 5 to fill 10 square feet (about 1 m²)
- 7 for a single row 10 ft (3 m) long
- 17 to fill a 4 × 8 ft bed on its own
In a mixed border, plant it as a group of three or five, with a second group further along in the other number.
In the bed above, the planner used three in one group.
Will stiff goldenrod spread?
It seeds itself about; the risk of it taking over is moderate. Self-seeds in open ground. Cut off the heads after flowering in a small garden.
What flowers after stiff goldenrod?
Stiff goldenrod is over by late September. These start as it finishes and carry the same spot on, so it never goes flat:
- Aromatic aster 'October Skies': from mid September to late October, 20 in tall, to stand in front of it and cover its fading stems (a recorded partner).
- Chrysanthemum 'Sheffield Pink': from late September to early November, 2½ ft tall, to stand in front of it and cover its fading stems.
- October daphne: from mid September to late October, 8 in tall, to stand in front of it and cover its fading stems.
What does stiff goldenrod look like in winter?
Stiff goldenrod dies down to the ground and there is nothing to see until spring. The old stems can be cut in autumn, or left until spring as shelter for overwintering insects.
More Solidago
- Blue-stemmed goldenrod Solidago caesia
- Goldenrod 'Fireworks' Solidago rugosa 'Fireworks'
- Goldenrod 'Golden Fleece' Solidago sphacelata 'Golden Fleece'
- Goldenrod 'Little Lemon' Solidago 'Dansolitlem' (Little Lemon)
- Showy goldenrod Solidago speciosa
- Zigzag goldenrod Solidago flexicaulis
In these guides
- Tall perennials and grasses for the back of a border
- Plants that flower in fall
- Silver and grey-leaved plants
Zone guides: Zone 3 · Zone 4 · Zone 5 · Zone 6 · Zone 7 · Zone 8 · Zone 9
Every fact on record
- Type
- Perennial
- Size
- 4 ft (120 cm) tall, 24 in (60 cm) wide
- Plant
- 18 in (45 cm) apart
- Height class
- Moderately tall (3 to 4 ft)
- Place in the bed
- Back
- Flowers
- Mid August to late September; flat plates; yellow
- Leaves
- Bold texture, herbaceous; grey-green
- Shape
- Upright, self-seeding
- Hardy in
- USDA zones 3 to 9
- Light
- Full sun
- Soil
- Lean, dry and sharply drained
- Water
- Low
- Feeding
- None needed
- Family
- Asteraceae
Checked against VASCAN (plants of Canada). Flowering times are for zone 5: later in colder zones, earlier in warmer ones. Toxicity and spread information is a general gardening guide, not veterinary or medical advice, and invasive status varies by region. If a person or pet eats a plant, contact poison control or a vet. Check your local invasive species list before planting anything with a spread warning.