NC Native Plant Society:
Plant Details

Baccharis halimifolia

Silverling, High-tide Bush, Mullet Bush, Groundsel Tree, Sea Myrtle

Scientific Name:	Baccharis halimifolia
Genus:	Baccharis
Species Epithet:	halimifolia
Common Name:	Silverling, High-tide Bush, Mullet Bush, Groundsel Tree, Sea Myrtle
Plant Type	Shrub
Life Cycle	Perennial
Plant Family	Asteraceae (Aster Family)
Native/Alien:	NC Native
Size:	3-6 ft., 6-12 ft., 12-36 ft.
Bloom Color(s):	White, Yellow, Green
Light:	Sun - 6 or more hours of sun per day, Part Shade - 2 to 6 hours of sun per day
Soil Moisture:	Dry, Moist
Bloom Time:	August, September, October
Growing Area:	Mountains, Piedmont, Sandhills, Coastal Plain
Habitat Description:	Fresh and brackish marshes, marsh borders, hammocks, moist abused land, roadsides, ditches, old fields, and a wide variety of disturbed areas. Native and common to the NC coastal plain (primarily maritime and estuarine edges), but has invaded inland, especially along highways and the edges of cultivated fields; now a common non-native in the NC piedmont, rare in mountains. “B. halimifolia is becoming increasingly common inland, and can be an aggressive invader in sunny sites after silvicultural disturbance” (Weakley 2015).
Leaf Arrangement:	Alternate
Leaf Retention:	Semi-evergreen
Leaf Type:	Leaves veined, not needle-like or scale-like
Leaf Form:	Simple
Life Cycle:	Perennial
Wildlife Value:	Has some wildlife value
Landscape Value:	Not Recommended for home landscapes
State Rank:	S5: Secure ^(*Key)
Global Rank:	G5 - Secure ^(*Key)
Notes:	Dioecious (male and female flowers on separate plants); the flowers are not showy, but the mature seeds have silvery-white bristles and are quite showy in the fall (older people liken them to shaving brushes).
Fluffy white seed clusters in November Orange County, NC Bettina Darveaux
Female flowers. Pender Co., NC Lisa Lofland Gould
Male flowers. Pender Co., NC Lisa Lofland Gould
The leaves are elliptical to rhombic in shape with small lobes and gray-green in color. Orange Co., NC Bettina Darveaux
Many branches arise from the short trunks. The bark is orange-brown when young, later gray with flat intersecting ridges and orangeish shallow furrows. Orange Co., NC Bettina Darveaux
Links:	USDA PLANTS Database Record Vascular Plants of NC: https://auth1.dpr.ncparks.gov/flora/plant_list.php NC State Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox: https://plants.ces.ncsu.edu/find_a_plant/?q=Baccharis 700 Bird-friendly Plants for NC: https://nc.audubon.org/700