by Mary Free and Christa Watters, Extension Master Gardeners
Today’s Tried and True Native Plant Selection—Çoreopsis verticillata—is a member of the Asteraceae (aster or composite family). It belongs to one of the seven Asteraceae genera that support specialist bees—those that require the pollen of specific plants to survive. Specialist bees comprise 28% of Virginia’s native bee population and 27% of Maryland’s, ranking them second and fourth among eastern states with the highest percentage of specialist bees. The Asteraceae play a significant role in the ecosystem where two of its genera—Solidago (goldenrod) and Symphyotrichum (aster)—are considered keystone plant species, which are critical to the food web and each of which supports about 100 lepidopteran species.
The Asteraceae have a unique flower structure that is especially appealing to pollinators. Learn about this particular inflorescence called a capitulum with its disk and/or ray florets and why they are so attractive to insects. Picture galleries show examples of 30 different plant species with capitula as well as 24 of the myriad pollinator species that you can draw to your gardens with composite flowers. Additionally, a short video shows how an American lady butterfly and a brown-belted bumble bee forage on capitula.
Can you identify which of the pictured plants, besides the Coreopsis, have capitula?
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