Entire-leaved Gumweed (Grindelia integrifolia), a perennial member of the Asteraceae family, blooms throughout the summer and fall on the north Olympic Peninsula. It occurs all along the northwest coast near beaches and in nearby sandy soil. Blooming, Entire-leaved Gumweed has bright aster-shaped flowers atop spiky bracts (photo 4). Before blooming, the flower buds are covered in white, sticky latex, the “gum” of gumweed (right). A single plant often bears both buds and flowers.

Entire-leaved Gumweed gets its name from the usually smooth-edged (“entire”) leaves (left, lower left), with fingers for scale, though some individual plants have toothed leaves. The scientific name honors Russian botanist David Grindel (1776-1836).

We photographed blooming Entire-leaved Gumweed from July to October in 2006 (flower in winter | new growth in Spring). In the Port Angeles, WA area, Entire-leaved Gumweed grows along the city waterfront and on Ediz Hook (where it remains in leaf year-round, and where even an occasional flower remains in midwinter). In Sequim, it’s plentiful in the Dungeness Wildlife Reserve.

The flowers attract many insects, including caterpillars and adult moths, a number of fly species (such as this bee-mimic syrphid fly), several wasps (see Bembix) and several bees (see Halictid Bee | Megachilid Bee).

We have successfully transplanted Entire-leaved Gumweed to our yard, at 2,000 feet elevation, where it survives and blooms.