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Bitterweed

Helenium amarum

Bitterweed is a fine-leaved annual that froths with small yellow daisies from summer into fall, an easy, drought-tolerant reseeder for sunny, sandy ground and a steady late-season nectar source. All parts carry bitter sesquiterpene lactones: cattle that graze even a little give tainted, bitter milk.

Family

Asteraceae

Type

wildflower

Lifespan

annual

Height

1–2 ft

Spacing

0.75–1.25 ft apart

Light

part shade

Soil moisture

dry

Soil pH

acidic, alkaline

Bloom

January, February, March, April, May, June, July, August, September, October, November, December

Bloom colors

yellow

Wildlife value

butterflies

Landscape uses

naturalizing

Native states

AL, AR, CA, FL, GA, IA, IL, KS, LA, MA, MD, MI, MO, MS, NC, NY, OH, OK, PA, SC, TN, TX, VA, WI