Oxeye sunflower
Heliopsis helianthoides
Heliopsis helianthoides
5 remaining
Sun/shade: Full sun to part shade
Soil moisture: Dry to Medium
Height: 3-6'
Spread: 2-4'
Flowering period: July to August
Host plant for 2 caterpillar species
As the day transitions to evening, smooth oxeye’s rich yellow flowerheads take on a warm, orangish aspect as though expressing an internal light. Over the course of an exceptionally long, 2-3 month summer blooming period, the plant is indeed a continuous beacon to pollinators, offering both pollen and nectar as floral rewards. Small bees such as the small carpenter bee and the green sweat bee collect pollen, while larger bees including bumble bees, long-horned bees, and leafcutter bees collect nectar as well as pollen.
Smooth oxeye is easy to grow in the garden and performs well under a variety of conditions, including light availability spanning full sunlight to partial shade and soil moisture ranging from moderately wet to dry. In natural settings the plant is usually associated with woodlands, and within its native NE Ohio range it can be found growing along forest edges and in openings, and in well-drained, riparian woods possessing an open canopy structure. Smooth oxeye will attain a height of 4-6’ and usually displays a bushy appearance due to branching along its stems and also due to its habit of forming small clumps of multiple stems over the course of several growing seasons.