Stiff Tickseed     Coreopsis palmata

Other Name: Prairie Coreopsis


Description: The stiff Tickseed is a native, warm-season perennial belonging to the Compositae, or aster family. It reaches a height of up to 90 cm.

 

Leaf: The opposite, stiff leaves are sessile, and palmately 3-lobbed, crowsfoot-like. The leaves turn purplish in the fall.

 

Flower: The bright, yellow, short-stalked flower head occurs on top of a smooth stem. The flower heads contain both the yellow ray flowers and the brown disk flowers. The typically 8 petal-like rays are 3-lobed at the tip. The seed is bug-shaped like a tick, hence one of the common names.

 

Blooming months: June-July

 

Stem: smooth

 

 

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Discussion: The flowers were used as a yellow dye that was most effective on wool. The Native Americans also boiled the seeds and used them for relief of pain. The flower is considered to be a good source of honey.

 

Distribution: The Stiff Tickseed is found on dry prairies and in open woods. This species ranges from northern Indiana and Wisconsin to Manitoba, south to Oklahoma and southern Illinois.  

 

Native or Introduced to Illinois: Native

 

Location: N41048.677’ W089040.972’

 

Copyright: © 2004 Nancy Trainor, Challand Middle School, Sterling, Illinois

                                ntrainor@sterlingschools.org

References:

Keller, Carolyn. Prairie Plants of Whiteside County, Whiteside IL County Natural Area Guardians, 1991.

Ladd, Doug. Tallgrass Prairie Wildflowers, The Nature Conservancy, 1995.

Peterson, Roger Tory. Wildflowers Northeastern/North Central North America, Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston, 1968.

Mohlenbroch, Robert H., and John W. Voigt. Prairie Plants of Illinois, Department of Conservation.

http://plants.usda.gov/

 

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