Tatalencho colony flowering

When I went to the Wild Basin Wilderness Preserve on October 27th, the highlight of my visit was the colonies of tatalencho (Gymnosperma glutinosum) that were flowering there, more than I’d ever seen anywhere else. This is a plant that few people in Austin seem to know about, even though it’s in the same Asterae tribe of the sunflower family as goldenrod and can grow to 2 or 3 feet (1 m) in height. What I hadn’t noticed before, because I hadn’t encountered many tatalencho plants in earlier years, is that its flower heads have a pleasant scent, whereas I don’t detect an aroma in goldenrod and the great majority of yellow composite flowers.

© 2015 Steven Schwartzman