Chrysogonum virginianum L.
Golden star, goldenstar, golden-knees, green-and-gold
Golden star is a North American native, related to sunflowers. Its showy flowers and low growth as a ground cover make its cultivars popular with gardeners.
Plants: Less than 1′ (30 cm) in height, spreading via underground stolons to form mats.
Leaves: Hairy, alternate, roughly egg-shaped (elliptic-ovate to deltate-ovate), ⅞–4″ (2.5–10 cm) long, with crenate margins.
Flowers: Composite flowers—composed of a central yellow circle of 25-50 disc florets surrounded by 5 yellow ray florets. They bloom from March to June.
Fruits: Black or brown achenes.
Habitats: Open mesic to dry woodlands, in limestone soils.
Online References:
6/22/2017 · Garden in the Woods, Framingham, Massachusetts · ≈ 8 × 5″ (20 × 13 cm) 
5/15/1979 · Virginia · By Tim Chandler 
5/15/2010 · Garden in the Woods, Framingham, Massachusetts · ≈ 5 × 3½″ (13 × 9.2 cm) 
5/27/2016 · Acton Arboretum, Acton, Massachusetts 
6/22/2017 · Garden in the Woods, Framingham, Massachusetts · ≈ 10 × 6″ (24 × 16 cm) 
5/15/2010 · Garden in the Woods, Framingham, Massachusetts · ≈ 17 × 12″ (44 × 29 cm) 
5/15/2010 · Garden in the Woods, Framingham, Massachusetts · ≈ 6 × 7″ (14 × 18 cm) 
| Kingdom | Plantae | Plants, but not fungi, lichens, or algae (from Stearn's Botanical Latin) |
| Subkingdom | Tracheobionta | Vascular plants—plants with a “circulatory system” for delivering water and nutrients |
| Division | Magnoliophyta | Flowering plants, also known as angiosperms |
| Class | Magnoliopsida | Dicotyledons—plants with two initial seed leaves |
| Subclass | Asteridae | A large class that encompasses asters |
| Order | Asterales | Flowering plants with a central disk flower and surrounding petals, like daisies |
| Family | Asteraceae | The aster family, which also includes daisies and sunflowers; from the Greek ἀστήρ, “star,” for the star-shaped flowers |
| Genus | Chrysogonum | Probably means roughly “golden star” |
| Species | virginianum | “Of or from Virginia” |
Chrysogonum virginianum description by Thomas H. Kent, not updated.
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