Golden Groundsel

Packera aureus

Golden Groundsel is one of the great spring workhorses of the native garden. it blooms intensely yellow in April when color is scarce, spreads by rhizomes to form a dense weed-suppressing groundcover, and tolerates wet, shaded conditions that would challenge almost any other native. The golden daisy-like flowers rise above the rounded, heart-shaped basal leaves for several weeks, giving early bees and flies a reliable food source before much else has opened. Use it to carpet a shaded rain garden, stabilize a streamside bank, or fill in a low, wet corner where nothing else will thrive. It naturalizes quickly and looks intentional within a season. The evergreen foliage holds through most winters and keeps the ground covered while taller companions are dormant. This is one of the plants we recommend most consistently for difficult shaded sites.