Thanks for the info. Tiffy. I too sowed two varieties of Solidago this year (Fireworks & Golden Fleece), and had good germination with Fireworks. I still need to put them in their permananet homes so perhaps I'll have some blooms next year.

Oh! That's my other one too!! Golden Fleece. Love the large foliage on that one. :O) It did not bloom in it's first year but grew quite well.

We moved our Highbush Blueberries closer to some perennial beds and I planted all my Solidago seedlings with them.

Tiffy - are you going to harvest seeds from the solidago? I've turned my nose up at it all these years because my little brother suffered terribly with hayfever as a toddler. He lived to grow up but moved to Florida to get away from all the New England pollen. My next-door neighbor has solidago growing and I could harvest seeds from his plants but they're growing with gooseneck loosestrife and I don't want to accidentally grab the wrong seeds. The GL has already spread to other flowerbeds in his yard & started growing up through the pavement of his driveway and he won't get rid of it.

Oh gee, I was expecting pictures, tiff!!

Gardenweed, I wonder if you are getting confused with ragweed? I don't know if goldenrod causes allergies too, but I do know that so many people mix these two plants up. I use goldenrod in the bouquets I sell at the farmer's market and I am constantly assuring people that it is not ragweed. I think probably you can grow solidago without fear of allergies... unless of course you are indeed allergic to IT and not ragweed, lol!

:)
Dee

I have to agree with Dee. Solidago is not the allergy culprit, but Ragweed is. DH has bad allergies and he loves the Solidago so we bring it in for bouquets all the time. The first time I did this he nearly took a fit thinking I was trying to do him in but I convinced him that Ragweed was his enemy. :O)

I'll try to get photos this weekend Dee.

Gardenweed - I'll see about collecting seed. If I collect it will be from a Solidago Fireworks not grown from seed but given by a friend. It has the strongest blooms on it right now and is beautiful!!

Goldenrod does NOT cause hay fever. This myth is completely illogical - Solidago species have showy flowers with heavy sticky pollen that are designed to attract and be pollinated by insects, not the wind. If you watch Goldenrod plants that are in bloom, they will be alive with insects. Ambrosia species (ragweed) have inconspicuous flowers that do not need to attract insects, because their abundant pollen is released to the wind. And that pollen is what causes hay fever.

'Fireworks' is a cultivar of Solidago rugosa - an attractive but highly variable species of goldenrod. Since Solidago is self-incompatible - meaning the Fireworks plant must cross-pollinate with another individual plant of a different genotype to produce seed - I would guess that as your WS'n plants grow, they will exhibit some of the variable characteristics of the species.

I would love to see pics too though! I love goldenrod.

My(purchased) Solidago 'Fireworks' self-seeds somewhat and the progeny look just like the parent to me. I was wondering about Solidago bicolor. I had two S.bicolor plants but lost one. If I collect seeds from my one remaining plant, will the seeds be any good? Cullina says that asters are (usually?) self-unfruitful, but what about goldenrods??

Ontnative - from what I've read, Solidago is self-sterile just like Asters. My limited experience has shown that to be true. For several years, I have had ONE S. caesia plant - wreath goldenrod, and it is a lovely specimen. So I collected seed and WS'd in 2009 - not a single sprout!! And all the other Solidago species I've ws'n - at least 4 - have sprouted like crazy.

So this past fall, I was delighted to find some S. caesia growing along a friend's driveway, in a woodsy area - some wild plants. I dug up and transplanted a few small ones to my back garden. Hand-pollinated a couple with my original plant. We will see if the seeds sprout this year.

Don't know for sure though. Gardening is a big fun experiment!!

I searched on the net and found that solidagos(goldenrods)are MOSTLY self-sterile, i.e. they don't usually pollinate themselves, but there can be a small percentage of fertile seeds produced. I will plant a large number of seeds collected from my one plant of bicolor and see if I can germinate a few seedlings. BTW I have several s.caesia scattered around my garden, and they usually self-seed a moderate amount for me. It is my favourite goldenrod.