Description:  Schweinitz's Sunflower is a perennial herb that grows from 1 to 2 m tall from a cluster of tuberous roots.  The stems are usually solitary, branching only at or above mid-stem.  The stem is usually pubescent and is often purple.  Schweinitz's sunflower begins flowering in late August or early September and continues flowering until the first frost.  The yellow disk and ray flowers are formed on small heads; the involucre (disc) is less than 1.5 cm across.  The petals are 2 to 3 cm long.  The nutlets are 3.3 to 3.5 millimeters long and are glabrous with rounded tips.  The lanceolate leaves are opposite on the lower stem and alternate near the flowers.  They are generally larger on the lower stem, and gradually reduced upwards and are thick and stiff in texture.  The pubescence of the leaves is distinctive and is one of the best characters to distinguish Schweinitz's sunflower from its relatives.  The upper surface of the leaves is scabrous (rough), with the broad-based spinose hairs directed toward the tip of the leaf.  The lower surface is more or less densely pubescent, with soft white hairs obscuring the leaf surface.  Lower stem leaves average 10 to 20 cm long and 1.5 to 2.5 cm wide while upper leaves are half this size.  The leaves are five to 10 times as long as wide and either sessile or have short petioles.  Leaf margins are entire or with a few obscure serrations and are generally also somewhat revolute.  Reproduction is accomplished both sexually (by seed) and asexually (by tuberous rhizome).

Habitat:  It is believed that this species formerly occupied prairie like habitats or Post Oak - Blackjack Oak savannas that were maintained by fire.  Current habitats include roadsides, power line clearings, old pastures, woodland openings and other sunny or semi-sunny situations.  Schweinitz's sunflower is known from a variety of soil types but is generally found growing on shallow, poor, clayey and/or rocky soils, especially those derived from mafic rocks.  In the few sites where Schweinitz's sunflower occurs in relatively natural vegetation, the natural community is considered a Xeric Hardpan Forest (Schafale and Weakley 1990).

Distribution and Range:  Schweinitz's sunflower is endemic to the Piedmont physiographic province of North Carolina and South Carolina.  The species is currently known from Anson, Cabarrus, Davidson, Gaston, Mecklenburg, Montgomery, Randolph, Rowan, Stanly, Stokes, Surry and Union counties in North Carolina and York and Lancaster counties in South Carolina.

Listing:  Schweinitz's sunflower was listed as Endangered on May 7, 1991 under the provisions of the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (as amended).

Threats:  Schweinitz's sunflower is threatened by fire suppression, highway construction, residential and industrial development, and maintenance activities in roadside and utlities rights of way.

Why Protect Schweinitz's sunflower:  Extinction is a natural process.  Normally, new species develop through a process known as speciation at about the same rate they go extinct.  However, because of air and water pollution, over-hunting, extensive deforestation, the loss of wetlands, and other human-impacts, extinctions are now occurring at a rate that far exceeds speciation.  These actions are reducing the biodiversity on Earth.

The reduction of biodiversity reduces the ecological integrity of our environment.  All living organisms perform a function in our environment and are dependent on the functions of other organisms.  In turn, there is interconnectedness among species including us in the environment. 

For More Information on Schweinitz's sunflower... 

Center for Plant Conservation species profile

Detailed illustration of Schweinitz's sunflower

Detailed illustrations of leaves, roots, and flowers of Schweinitz's sunflower

Do you need additional help? 

For additional information about Schweinitz's sunflower or the information presented on this webpage, contact Carolyn Wells in the Asheville Field Office at carolyn_wells@fws.gov.

Questions related to the Service's endangered species program or other program activities can be addressed to the appropriate staff from our Asheville or Raleigh Field Offices.

Other Sites of Interest

• North Carolina Natural Heritage Program
• North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission