It appears that one of my mystery goldenrods is Solidago racemosa.  This might not interest you much, but it interests me because although it is a rare plant throughout its range, it can be found pretty readily along the rocky bluffs of the Potomac gorge.

It’s a compact plant, only growing a foot or so tall, with leaves both on the stem and forming a basal rosette.

Although S. racemosa has several different common names, none of them are commonly used.  It’s gone through several botanical name changes, too, formerly known as  S. simplex and S. spathulata.

Just about everything you’d care to know about the Solidagos can be found in the goldenrods section of the Astereae Lab web page of the University of Waterloo in Canada.

S. racemosa is endangered in New York, Massachusetts, and Pennsylvania; threatened in Tennessee; and of special concern in Kentucky.