Your help is appreciated. We depend on donations to help keep this site free and up to date for you. Can you please help us?

Donate

Native Plant Trust: Go Botany Discover thousands of New England plants

Hieracium kalmii — Canada hawkweed

Copyright: various copyright holders. To reuse an image, please click it to see who you will need to contact.

Facts

Hieracium kalmii was named for Pehr Kalm (1715-1779), a Swedish botanist who spent time in America and has several other species bearing his name (for example Lobelia kalmia and Hypericum kalmianum). The Ojibwa nibbled the root for luck in hunting, to attract a doe.

Habitat

Anthropogenic (man-made or disturbed habitats), cliffs, balds, or ledges, forest edges, grassland, meadows and fields, shores of rivers or lakes

New England distribution

Adapted from BONAP data

Found this plant? Take a photo and post a sighting.

North America distribution

Adapted from BONAP data

enlarge

Characteristics

Habitat
  • terrestrial
  • wetlands
New England state
  • Connecticut
  • Maine
  • Massachusetts
  • New Hampshire
  • Rhode Island
  • Vermont
Leaf type
leaves are simple (i.e., lobed or unlobed but not separated into leaflets)
Leaf arrangement
alternate: there is one leaf per node along the stem
Leaf blade edges
  • the edge of the leaf blade has lobes, or it has both teeth and lobes
  • the edge of the leaf blade has no teeth or lobes
  • the edge of the leaf blade has teeth
Flower type in flower heads
the flower head has ray flowers only, meaning all of the individual flowers of the flower head have a strap-shaped ray, which may or may not have teeth at the very tip of the ray
Ray flower color
yellow
Tuft or plume on fruit
at least a part of the plume is made up of fine bristles
Spines on plant
the plant has no spines
Leaf blade length
20–150 mm
Disk flower number
0
Show all characteristics

  • Flowers

    Bases of bract appendages
    NA
    Bract outer side hair type
    the bracts are not hairy on their outer surface
    Bract outer side hairs
    the bracts are not hairy on their outer surfaces
    Bract tip shape
    • the tips of the bracts acute (have a sharp point)
    • the tips of the bracts are obtuse (have a blunt point)
    • the tips of the bracts are rounded
    Disk flower color
    NA
    Disk flower lobe number
    0
    Disk flower number
    0
    Disk flower proportions
    NA
    Disk flower reproductive parts
    NA
    Disk flower shape
    NA
    Flower head number
    • each flowering stem has four or more flower heads on it
    • each flowering stem has only one to three flower heads on it
    Flower head outer flowers
    at the outer edge of the flower head, each flower has a single enlarged lobe or strap
    Flower head platform
    the base has no bristles or papery scales
    Flower head platform surface
    NA
    Flower head profile
    the disk is flat or nearly flat across the top
    Flower head shape
    the flower head is hemispherical (like the bottom half of a sphere)
    Flower type in flower heads
    the flower head has ray flowers only, meaning all of the individual flowers of the flower head have a strap-shaped ray, which may or may not have teeth at the very tip of the ray
    Height of flower head base
    8–11 mm
    Inflorescence branching (Solidago)
    NA
    Inflorescence shape
    the inflorescence is flat-topped in profile
    Number of bracts at flower head base
    12–21
    Ovary beak
    there is no beak on the ovary
    Ovary cross-section
    the ovary has five or more corners in cross-section
    Ovary hair type
    the ovary has no hairs on it
    Ovary hairs
    the ovary has no hairs on it
    Ovary lines or ribs
    • there are seven to nine ribs visible on the ovary
    • there are ten or more ribs visible on the ovary
    Peduncle hair type
    the hairs on the peduncles are branched
    Peduncle hairs
    the peduncles are hairy
    Ray flower color
    yellow
    Ray flower reproductive parts
    the ray flowers have both carpels and stamens
    Ray flowers
    • 26-50
    • more than 50
    Ray length
    10–18 mm
    Reproductive system
    all the flowers on the plant contain both carpels and stamens
    Scale tip
    NA
    Smaller bracts at base of bracts
    there is a cycle of much smaller bracts outside the cycle of larger and longer bracts
    Style branch number
    there are no obvious branches on the style

  • Fruits or seeds

    Dispersal unit
    the seeds fall off or are dispersed separately from one another
    Number of pappus parts
    11 or more
    Ovary beak length
    0 mm
    Ovary length in developed fruit
    2.5–3.5 mm
    Seed hair tuft color
    • the pappus hairs are tan to dark brown
    • the pappus hairs are white or off-white
    Seed hair tuft details
    the pappus hairs are hooked or barbed
    Seed hair tuft length
    6–7 mm
    Seed tuft scale number
    0
    Seed tuft type
    the pappus is made of very fine hairs or bristles
    Top of disk flower ovary
    NA
    Tuft or plume on fruit
    at least a part of the plume is made up of fine bristles

  • Glands or sap

    Leaf blade glands
    the leaf blades have no glandular (translucent) dots or scales
    Sap
    the sap is milky and opaque, and may be white or colored

  • Growth form

    Growth form
    the plant has one or more free-standing stems
    Horizontal rooting stem
    there are no stolons
    Plant lifespan
    the plant is perennial, it shows evidence of previous year's leaves, stems or stem bases
    Spines on plant
    the plant has no spines
    Underground organs
    • the plant has a caudex (the root mass is firm and hardened at the top)
    • there is a thickened taproot on the plant

  • Leaves

    Final leaf segment length (compound lvs only)
    0 mm
    Final leaf segment width (compound lvs only)
    0 mm
    Hairs on underside of leaf blade
    • the underside of the leaf is fuzzy or hairy
    • the underside of the leaf is not hairy, or has very few hairs
    Hairs on upper side of leaf blade
    • the upper side of the leaf is fuzzy or hairy
    • the upper side of the leaf is not hairy, or has very few hairs
    Leaf arrangement
    alternate: there is one leaf per node along the stem
    Leaf blade base
    the leaf has no petiole and at the base it clasps the stem, or goes all the way around the stem so the stem appears to pierce the leaf
    Leaf blade base shape
    • the base of the leaf blade is cuneate (wedge-shaped, tapers to the base with relatively straight, converging edges), or narrow
    • the base of the leaf blade is rounded
    • the base of the leaf blade is truncate (ends abruptly in a more or less straight line as though cut off)
    Leaf blade bloom
    • the underside of the leaf has no noticeable bloom
    • there is a noticeable powdery or waxy bloom on the underside of the leaf
    Leaf blade edges
    • the edge of the leaf blade has lobes, or it has both teeth and lobes
    • the edge of the leaf blade has no teeth or lobes
    • the edge of the leaf blade has teeth
    Leaf blade flatness
    • the edges of the leaf are curled under
    • the leaf is flat (planar) at the edges
    Leaf blade hairs
    the leaf blade has branched hairs
    Leaf blade length
    20–150 mm
    Leaf blade shape
    • the leaf blade is elliptic (widest near the middle and tapering at both ends)
    • the leaf blade is lanceolate (lance-shaped; widest below the middle and tapering at both ends)
    • the leaf blade is oblong (rectangular but with rounded ends)
    • the leaf blade is ovate (widest below the middle and broadly tapering at both ends)
    Leaf blade surface colors
    there is no noticeable color variation on the upper surface of the leaf
    Leaf blade tip
    • the tip of the leaf blade is acute (sharply pointed)
    • the tip of the leaf blade is obtuse (bluntly pointed)
    Leaf blade width
    7–40 mm
    Leaf disposition
    the leaves are nearly similar in size, prominence of teeth, and length of stalks throughout the stem
    Leaf spines
    there are no spines on the leaf edges
    Leaf stalk
    the leaves have no leaf stalks, but attach directly to the stem
    Leaf tip extension
    NA
    Leaf type
    leaves are simple (i.e., lobed or unlobed but not separated into leaflets)
    Leaflet number
    0
    Specific leaf type
    the leaves are simple (i.e., lobed or unlobed but not separated into leaflets
    Teeth per side of leaf blade
    At least 0

  • Place

    Habitat
    • terrestrial
    • wetlands
    New England state
    • Connecticut
    • Maine
    • Massachusetts
    • New Hampshire
    • Rhode Island
    • Vermont
    Specific habitat
    • cliffs, balds, or ledges
    • edges of forests
    • grasslands
    • man-made or disturbed habitats
    • meadows or fields
    • shores of rivers or lakes

  • Scent

    Plant odor
    the plant does not have much of an odor

  • Stem, shoot, branch

    Flowering stem cross-section
    the flowering stem is circular, or with lots of small angles
    Leaves on stem
    there is at least one full leaf above the base of the flowering stem
    Stem bloom
    • the stem has a powdery or waxy film on it that can be rubbed away
    • there is no powdery or waxy film on the stem
    Stem internode hair direction
    the hairs point mostly upwards to outwards
    Stem internode hair type
    • at least some of the hairs on the stem are branched
    • the stem has no hairs between the nodes
    Stem internode hairs
    • the stem has hairs between the nodes
    • the stem has no hairs between the nodes
    Stem wings
    the stem does not have wings on it

Wetland status

Not classified

In New England

Distribution

Connecticut
present
Maine
present
Massachusetts
present
New Hampshire
present
Rhode Island
present
Vermont
present

Conservation status

Exact status definitions can vary from state to state. For details, please check with your state.

Massachusetts
widespread (S-rank: S5)

From Flora Novae Angliae dichotomous key

5.  Hieracium kalmii L. N

Canada hawkweed. Hieracium canadense Michx.; H. canadense Michx. var. fasciculatum (Pursh) Fern.; H. canadense Michx. var. kalmii (L.) Scoggin, nom. illeg.; H. kalmii L. var. fasciculatum (L.) Lepage; H. umbellatum L. var. canadense (Michx.) Breitung • CT, MA, ME, NH, RI, VT. Fields, sand plains, roadsides, forest edges, cliffs, grasslands, shorelines.

5×15. Hieracium kalmii × Hieracium scabrum → Hieracium ×‌fernaldii Lepage is an extremely rare hawkweed hybrid in 
New England. In general aspect it resembles H. kalmii but without large leaf blade 
teeth (which are sometimes present in H. kalmii) and with some of the peduncles 
of the plant bearing 1 or a few stipitate glands.

Native to North America?

Yes

Sometimes confused with

Hieracium scabrum:
flower head stalks with abundant stipitate glands and leaf blades entire or with minute teeth (vs. H. kalmii, with flower head stalks with few or no stipitate glands and leaf blades evidently toothed).
Hieracium umbellatum:
leaf blades linear to lanceolate or narrow-oblong, the principal ones mostly 3–15 mm wide, mostly 4–12 times as long as wide, provided with abundant stout, rigid, conical hairs, at least toward the margin of the blade (vs. H. kalmii, with leaf blades lanceolate to oblong-lanceolate or narrow-ovate, the principal ones mostly 12–40 mm wide, mostly 2–5 times as long as wide, lacking rigid, conical hairs or these very sparse).

Synonyms

  • Hieracium canadense Michx.
  • Hieracium canadense Michx. var. fasciculatum (Pursh) Fern.
  • Hieracium canadense Michx. var. kalmii (L.) Scoggan, an illegitimate name
  • Hieracium kalmii var. fasciculatum (L.) Lepage
  • Hieracium umbellatum var. canadense (Michx.) Breitung

Family

Asteraceae

Genus

Hieracium