Bidens laevis
smooth beggarticks
Overview
Bidens laevis is a wetland perennial, sometimes growing as an annual, that reaches 12-36 inches (30-90 cm) tall and 12-24 inches (30-60 cm) wide, with smooth, often reddish stems that root where they touch wet mud. The opposite leaves are lance-shaped, 2-6 inches (5-15 cm) long, with toothed edges and a smooth surface. From August to November it produces golden-yellow daisy-like flower heads 1-2.5 inches (2.5-6 cm) across, each with 7-8 broad ray florets around a yellow disk. The heads close at night and on overcast days. B. laevis grows in fresh and brackish marshes, pond and stream margins, ditches, and seasonally flooded ground across the southern and coastal United States and into the Neotropics. It needs constant moisture and fails in dry soil. The flat seeds carry two barbed awns that cling to fur, feathers, and clothing, spreading the plant and giving it the name beggarticks. Bees and butterflies visit the flowers, and waterfowl and songbirds eat the seeds. Plants can self-sow heavily in suitable wet ground and may crowd a small water-garden margin.
Native Range
Bidens laevis is native to the United States and the warmer Americas, most frequent in the southern and coastal states from California and the Southwest east to the Atlantic and south through Mexico and Central America. It grows in freshwater and brackish marshes, along ponds and slow streams, and in ditches and wet meadows.Suggested Uses
Grown along pond and stream margins, in rain gardens, bog gardens, and constructed wetlands for late-season color. It is spaced 12-18 inches (30-45 cm) apart in consistently wet ground and naturalizes into colonies. The autumn flowers support pollinators, and the seeds feed waterfowl and songbirds.How to Identify
Appearance
Size & Dimensions
Height1' - 3'
Width/Spread1' - 2'
Reaches mature size in approximately 2 years
Bloom Information
Flowering runs from August into November, extending into the cooler part of the season. The golden-yellow heads are 1-2.5 inches (2.5-6 cm) across, close at night and in dull weather, and open by day. Bees and butterflies visit the flowers for nectar and pollen.
Detailed Descriptions
Foliage Description
greenGrowing Conditions
Sun Requirements
Requires 6-12 hours of direct sunlight daily
• Full Sun: 6+ hours of direct sunlight
• Partial Shade: 3-6 hours of direct sunlight
• Full Shade: Less than 3 hours of direct sunlight
Care & Maintenance
Care Guide
Bidens laevis grows in full sun with 6 or more hours of direct light and constantly moist to wet loam, silt, or clay at pH 6.0 to 7.5, including shallow standing water up to a few inches deep. It tolerates seasonal flooding and brackish conditions but fails where the soil dries out. The species is semi-hardy, performing as a perennial in USDA zones 6-10 and as an annual at colder margins. It self-sows freely, so seedlings appear around the parent plant. Rich, wet soil produces the tallest, heaviest-flowering plants.Pruning
Little pruning is needed. Stems can be cut back by half in midsummer to reduce height and produce a bushier, more compact plant. Removing spent flower heads before the barbed seeds ripen limits self-sowing and the spread of clinging seeds.Pruning Schedule
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
summer
Container Growing
✓ Suitable for container growing
Minimum container size: 3 gallons