Carolina Elephant’s Foot or Leafy Elephantfoot
Take a look at this late summer/early fall wildflower. It is a very unusual aster!
Notice how each stem is terminated by three leafy bracts and a cluster of tiny blossoms?
From a distance, it looks like each cluster is one circle of tiny white or lavender ray flowers, but upon close inspection you’ll see it is just the opposite. This aster has no ray flowers at all. The cluster you see is comprised of several disk flowers grouped together. The corolla of each disk has 5 thin lobes.
The large basal leaves, which may be absent, give the plant its name, Elephant’s Foot. The leaves can grow up to 8 inches in length. There are also alternating stem leaves that clasp the tall pubescent flowering stem. The dark green, hairy leaves are roughly elliptical in shape.
Although these plants were photographed in North Carolina, this species is common in Virginia and in much of the Southeastern U.S. Bloom time is August through October in open woods.