By whatever name, Polymnia makes a show

A close look at the composite flower head of Polymnia reveals that only the outer circle of ray flowers produces seed. Photo by Ken Moore.
By Ken Moore
A great place to see Polymnia, commonly called bearsfoot or leafcup, is along Bolin Creek Trail between the Chapel Hill Police Department and the community center. Walking along that trail last week, I was impressed with the multitude of miniature sunflower-like flowers of this wildflower, common everywhere along roadsides and forest edges, standing six feet tall or more along the length of the greenway.
Most trail frequenters jog, walk dogs or simply walk and talk too intently to take “a closer look†at the natural world about them.
However, it is hard for even the most unobservant to miss the giant leaf images on the above-ground sewer manholes. These images, painted by local artist Michael Brown, identify some of the most common trees, and there are some really big ones, growing along the edge.
For the renewed botanical diversity along the trail, we can thank Bill Bracey and his crew of dedicated Bolin Creek volunteers, who for years, on the third Saturday mornings of September through May, have been removing invasive exotic plants like privet, silverberry, bittersweet and Japanese honeysuckle. As a result, Polymnia, as well as a number of other native plants, like spicebush, Lindera benzoin, host plant of spicebush swallowtails, are making a dramatic comeback.
I’ve always been fascinated with the relatively large leaves of Polymnia; the coarsely toothed, three-to five-lobed leaves somewhat resemble, with a stretch of the imagination, a paw print of a bear, thus the common name bearsfoot.
You’ll have to stretch the imagination even further for the other common name, leafcup. Where the petioles of those leaves are attached to the stem, opposite one another, there is a hint of a cup-like reservoir at the point of attachment. I will be happy to know of a more obvious explanation for this name.
I am content to simply call it Polymnia, the scientific name I learned years ago. That name supposedly honors Polyhymnia, the Greek muse of sacred song and oratory. The species epithet, uvedalia, honors Robert Uvedale, an English school teacher and botanist who grew this American native in his English garden more than 200 years ago.
As happens frequently when I check myself on botanical names, I discovered that Polymnia uvedalia is no longer botanically correct. It has been reclassified, Smallanthus uvedalius, for those of you who wish to be taxonomically current. I don’t have to pass any more tests, so I will continue to call it Polymnia!

Tall stems of Polymnia stretch out to invite a closer look surrounding the Bolin Creek Trail entrance sign. Photo by Ken Moore.
Whatever name you prefer, wherever you happen upon this tall, flowering perennial of the aster (composite) family, take “a closer look†at the various stages of buds, flowers and seed heads. Find one that has a complete circle of ray flowers surrounding the center of tube flowers, and with a keen eye you will discover that only those outer ray flowers are producing seed. The seed is not unlike the typical seed of sunflowers, and you should not be surprised to see goldfinches and other birds flying away from the seed heads as you approach.
And while you’re examining the plant, what do you think of those leaves? Perhaps you can come up with a more descriptive common name.
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