Small's Ragwort
Packera smallii
Bright yellow early spring bloom on a tidy, compact native for shaded rocky spots. The textured basal leaves look good most of the year.
Typically 1 pint–1 gal · $9–$30 · final price at pickup
- Thu, Aug 138 AM – 4 PM
- Fri, Aug 148 AM – 4 PM
- Sat, Aug 158 AM – 2 PM
A compact southern Appalachian native with early yellow blooms in shade, where spring color options are genuinely scarce.
Small's Ragwort is a compact, low-growing native that blooms bright yellow in early spring, one of the first wildflowers to open after Golden Groundsel. Despite the common name 'ragwort,' this is a tidy, well-behaved plant with deeply lobed, textured basal leaves that look good through most of the year. The cheerful yellow daisy-like flowers appear before many insects have emerged, making it an important early food source. It's a specialist plant for shaded rocky settings, particularly happy in the well-drained but root-moist pockets found at the base of rock outcrops and slopes. An excellent front-of-border plant for a woodland garden where spring color is hard to come by. The basal foliage is attractive even when not in bloom, with a deep green that reads well against lighter-colored mulch or stone.
A nursery-grown plant, ready for the ground.
Healthy, container-grown small's ragwort propagated on-site at Hill House from regional genetics. Includes a one-page care card. We make every effort to supply plants as listed; occasionally we substitute a similar species of equal value.
- Sun
- Part sun
- Water
- Average
- Mature size
- 8"–1.5' · 8–14 in wide
- Bloom time
- March–April
- USDA zones
- 4–8
- Family
- Asteraceae
- Native range
- Southern Appalachians and adjacent Piedmont. rocky woods, outcrops, and woodland margins in Virginia, North Carolina, Tennessee, and Georgia
Care notes for small's ragwort.
Plant in partial to full shade in moist, well-drained, humus-rich soil. It tolerates dry conditions better than Packera aureus but appreciates consistent moisture. Allow some self-seeding to naturalize a colony over time. Cut back dead flower stems after bloom. The basal rosette is evergreen in mild winters. leave it in place. Little other maintenance needed once established.
Pairs well with these.
Same light, same soil, same wildlife. Janet's picks to plant alongside small's ragwort.
Or skip the guesswork.
Curated packages bundle complementary species for an instant habitat. One reservation, one pickup day, a printed layout map.
Short on Space Package
For gardeners who have an abundance of passion but are short on space, this package features tidy, upright, clump-forming natives that behave and function well in small spaces.
Shade Bed Package
Ferns, sedges, and woodland natives that thrive under existing trees.
Birder’s Paradise Package
For the avid bird watchers and budding ornithologists in our community, the Birder’s Paradise Package consists of species that Hill House Nursery staff and longtime native plant advocates such as Doug Tallamy consider ‘premier bird garden plants’.