prairie wildflower

Compass plant

Silphium laciniatum

Also known as Compassplant

Native to much of the USA and southern Canada

Ohio to Louisiana, west to eastern Great Plains

Light Full sun Sun tolerance
Moisture Dry Moisture preference
Zones 4–9 Cold to heat range
Bloom Jun–Aug Flowering time
Height up to 10 ft to 3.0 m
Life cycle Perennial Annual to perennial

Full details, see below

In the garden

A prairie wildflower for full sun and lean, dry soil. Its yellow flowers peak in July. At up to 10 ft, it needs room in meadows and sunny borders. It shrugs off drought once established. Hardy in USDA zones 4–9.

Growing conditions

Light

Full sun Partial shade Full shade

Moisture

Dry Moist Wet

Hardiness zones

Find your zone:

When it blooms

The Compass plant's yellow flowers bloom June to August, peaking in July. This midsummer display draws bees and flower flies.

Compass plant blooms yellowFoliage

Pollinators & wildlife

Bees Common Eastern Bumble Bee

also Western Honey Bee, Brown-belted Bumble Bee, American Bumble Bee +26 more
Ligated Furrow Bee, Bicolored Striped Sweat Bee, Red-belted Bumble Bee, Two-spotted Longhorn Bee, Black-and-gold Bumble Bee, Agapostemon texanus, Carpenter-mimic Leafcutter Bee, Pugnacious Leafcutter Bee, Bristle Sweat Bee, Cherry Mining Bee, Agile Longhorn Bee, Megachile brevis, Ceratina dupla, False Sunflower Cuckoo Nomad Bee, Sphecodes smilacinae, Melissodes coloradensis, Ptilothrix bombiformis, Drury's Long-horned Bee, Andrena miserabilis, Eucera belfragei, Svastra compta, Megachile pyrrhothorax, Lunate Longhorn-cuckoo Bee, Svastra obliqua, Agapostemon viridulus, Triepeolus concavus
Flower flies Margined Calligrapher

also Transverse-banded Flower Fly, Oblique Streaktail, Yellow-shouldered Drone Fly +4 more
Villa alternata, grasshopper bee fly, Shiny Thickleg, Geron rufipes
Butterflies Eastern Tiger Swallowtail

also Black Swallowtail, Gray Hairstreak, Arogos Skipper +2 more
Prairie Arogos Skipper, Anosia plexippus
Also visited by
- Beetles:
  
  Red Milkweed Beetle, Honeylocust Agrilus +1 more
  Chlorophorus glaucus

Butterflies that use this plant

Documented host and nectar records. Each links to a planting guide for that butterfly.

Full plant details

Where it grows

Habitat: PrairieThe wild plant community it grows in.
Native range: Much of the USA and southern CanadaUnited States (20): AL, AR, IA, IL, IN, KS, KY, LA, MI, MN, MO, MS, ND, NE, OH, OK, SD, TN, TX, WI. Canada (1): ON. Where it grows wild on its own, by state and province.
Native distribution: Ohio to Louisiana, west to eastern Great PlainsThe same native range, usually more exact than the state list, and often noting where it has spread beyond it.

Growing conditions

Light: Full sunHow much sun it takes, from full sun to full shade.
Moisture: DryThe soil dampness it prefers, from dry to wet.
Hardiness zones: USDA 4–9 · Canadian 5–7The cold-to-heat climate range it survives.
Soil: Various well-drained soilsThe soils it grows in naturally.
Soil texture: Light to heavy (sandy to clay)The soil grade it prefers, from sand to clay.
Soil pH: Mildly acid to mildly alkalineThe acidity to alkalinity it tolerates (7 is neutral).
Drought tolerance: HighRelative to plants of the same type and region, inferred from where it grows, not a days-without-water figure.

Growth & form

Height: up to 10 ft (to 3.0 m)Typical mature height.
Spread: ~2 ft (0.6 m)How wide one plant gets, a guide to spacing.
Life cycle: PerennialWhether it lives a single season (annual), two (biennial), or returns for years (perennial).

Flowers, foliage & fruit

Type: WildflowerWhat kind of plant it is.
Bloom: Jun–AugWhen it flowers.
Flower color: YellowThe bloom color, or colors.
Fruit/Seeds: Winged achene; ripens Jul–OctThe seed or fruit it sets after flowering.
Toxicity: None knownWhether any part is poisonous to people or pets.