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Coreopsis lanceolata

This plant is not currently for sale.  This is an archive page preserved for informational use.

Lance-leaf Coreopsis or Lance-leaf Tickseed, is a perennial wildflower 2-3 feet tall with striking golden 2-3-inch flowers characteristic of the genus, that is, with about 8 notched sterile ray flowers surrounding a center of many fertile, yellow disk flowers. The flowers are held on vertical stalks above a mat of evergreen foliage. The fertile disk flowers develop into small, flat-ish brown, winged seeds (“tick” like).The plant is naturally found in rocky prairies, glades, bluffs, sandy open ground, roadsides, railroads. It is a popular garden plant because: the flowers are strikingly beautiful; it is very dependable and prolifically flowering; because it has few problems with insects or disease; because it will thrive in conditions of high heat, drought and humidity; and because it draws butterflies, bees and birds to the garden. It prefers full sun and moist, well drained soil, and may sprawl a bit if planted in overly rich or moist garden soil. This is a short-lived perennial which readily self-seeds, traits which make it a great candidate for a meadow or wild garden. The tendency to seed so readily has unfortunately earned this species and high place on the Japanese invasive plant list.

Key Info

Scientific Name: Coreopsis lanceolata L.
Common Names: Lance-leaf Coreopsis, Sand Coreopsis
Light Requirement:
Moisture Requirement: ,
Leaf Retention:
Bloom Times: , , , ,
Flower Color: Gold

Additional Info

Habit: Grows as multiple, erect flower-bearing stems above evergreen foliage of sessile, linear-oblog leaves on the bottom portion of the plant.
Height: 2-3'
Spread: 2-3'
Soil Conditions: Average to moist (not wet); acidic to circumneutral pH; sandy, loamy clay loam
Leaves: Basal leaves are evergreen, lance-shaped and unlobed, about 6" long. Stem leaves are opposite, sessile, linear, oblong, deeply cut with 2-4 pinnate lobes. These stem leaves are found mostly on the bottom half of the flowering stalks, the flower stalks being devoid of leaves the last 12" or so.
Flowers (or reproductive structures: The mostly solitary 2"-flowers are composed of 8 petals or ray flowers with distinctive notching and a center of golden, fertile, disk flowers, carried on a long (up to 2-foot) leafless stalk.
Fruit: Single, dark brown seeds, narrowly winged, about 4 weeks after the flower withers.
Natural Distribution: Rocky prairies, glades, bluffs, sandy open ground, roadsides, railroads.
USDA Hardiness Zone: 4 to 9
USDA Wetland Indicator Status in NC: FACU
Pollination: Bees
Wildlife Connections: The floral nectar and pollen feed various beneficial pollinators including butterflies, skippers, moths, bees, wasps and beetles. The foliage hosts several types of moth caterpillars. Finches and other songbirds feed on the ripe seed. Mammalian herbivores who browse the foliage include rabbits, deer, groundhogs, horses and livestock (Illinoiswildflowers.info).
Propagation: From seed.