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Wyethia amplexicaulis
Also called Northern Mule's Ears, Mulesear Wyethia, Smooth Dwarf Sunflower, Mule's Ear Wyethia
Wyethia amplexicaulis is a common herbaceous perennial plant from the northwestern United States called northern wyethia, northern mule ears, or black sunflower.
Because of its tendency to grow together in dense colonies and its large, showy flowering heads, it is a well-known western wildflower that is often photographed. The leaves are not very palatable to large herbivores including livestock.
Because of their showy display when massed together, northern wyethia is sometimes planted in wildflower gardens. Though they provide strong early cover and growth they tend to be planted together with other wildflowers like blue flax (Linum lewisii), blanket flower (Gaillardia pulchella), or tufted evening primrose (Oenothera caespitosa) as they are vigorous in mid to late spring, but fade in the heat of summer.
The main method of propagation for northern wyethia in gardens is the same as in the wild, seeds. The seeds require at least one month of cold, moist stratification for successful germination at temperatures below 4.5 °C (40 °F). They are planted by gardeners at an approximate depth of 6 millimeters either directly in the soil in their final location or in flats or pots. Plants in containers are moved to their planting location in the fall after a season of growth. Northern wyethia can also be propagated by root divisions in the fall or early spring before growth starts. Each piece of root must have at least one bud.
The natural range of W. amplexicaulis is from the Pacific Northwest of the United States, mostly east of the Cascade Mountains in Washington and Oregon, to the Rocky Mountains in Montana and Wyoming. It is not known to grow in Canada, though it comes close to the border in Idaho. It grows as far south as Nevada, Utah, and northern Colorado.
Balsamorhiza sagittata · California compassplant · Arizona mule-ears · Coast Range mule-ears · Whitehead mule-ears · Humboldt mule-ears · Woolly mule-ears · Mule-ears
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Wyethia amplexicaulis by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts are shared under the same licence.
Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.
