In Defense of Goldenrod

It’s almost fall, the golden season, approaches, there's a wildflower that leads the way. Note that I said "wildflower," not "weed." I speak now in defense of goldenrod.

As some eyes grow itchy and noses runny, goldenrod often is blamed. But it's airborne pollen that causes allergies, pollen from some trees, some wildflowers, and all the grasses. Flowers that depend on insects – not air – for pollination can be told by their bright colors or sweet scent. All the better to lure insects in.

Goldenrod pollen is large and sticky, well designed to attach to visiting insects including honeybees. The allergy villain this time of year is ragweed, dull of color and lacking fragrance. Its lightweight, barely visible pollen is designed to be carried by the wind. I have no quarrel with calling this plant a weed.

Goldenrod is never dull of color. Some of our showier native species are valued additions to perennial gardens around the world. Its Latin name, Solidago, means to strengthen or make whole, and comes from its history as an herbalist's cure-all.

In Colonial times, roots, flowers, and leaves were shipped back to England by the boatload. Another historical footnote, during the American Revolution colonists drank tea from goldenrod leaves to replace tea from England. And dyes from its flowers added one of the few bright colors to a prairie pioneer's wardrobe.

In closing, I just can't resist saying that these lovely, under-appreciated wildflowers are nothing to sneeze at. Indeed, at one time, goldenrod concoctions probably treated sneezing and wheezing. And today they remain a tonic in another way, for human eyes as they grace the natural landscape.

(Script by Francie Von Mertens)