Heads few--many-flowered, radiate; the rays 1--16, pistillate. Scales of the oblong involucre appressed, destitute of herbaceous tips (except n. 1 and 2). Receptacle small, not chaffy. Achenes many-ribbed, nearly terete; pappus simple, of equal capillary bristles.--Perennial herbs, with mostly wand-like stems and nearly sessile stem-leaves, never heart-shaped. Heads small, racemed or clustered; flowers both of the disk and ray (except n. 6) yellow. (Name from _solidus_ and _ago_, to join, or make whole, in allusion to reputed vulnerary qualities.) Flowering in autumn. Conspectus of Groups. Heads small, sessile in flat-topped corymbs; leaves linear 41, 42 Heads all more or less pedicelled. Involucral scales rigid, with spreading herbaceous tips 1, 2 Involucral scales without green tips. Heads in a compound terminal corymb, not at all racemose 37--40 Heads small, mostly clustered in the axils of feather-veined leaves 3--7 Heads mostly large, in a terminal thyrse; leaves feather-veined. Western species 8, 9 Northern or mountain species 10--12 Heads mostly small or middle-sized; inflorescence paniculate (sometimes thyrsoidal). Leaves 3-ribbed; heads in 1-sided spreading panicled racemes. Stem and leaves smooth and glabrous 29--32 Pubescent or scabrous 33--36 Leaves not 3-ribbed, or only obscurely triple-nerved. Heads large; leaves thickish, very smooth, entire. Seashore 13 Panicle virgate or thyrsoid; leaves nearly entire 14--17 Heads very small in a short broad panicle; leaves nearly entire 18--20 Heads racemosely paniculate; leaves ample, the lower serrate 21--28 § 1. VIRGAÙREA. _Rays mostly fewer than the disk-flowers; heads all more or less pedicelled._ [*] _Scales of the much imbricated and rigid involucre with abruptly spreading herbaceous tips; heads in clusters or glomerate racemes, disposed in a dense somewhat leafy and interrupted wand-like compound spike._ 1. S. squarròsa, Muhl. Stem stout (2--5° high), hairy above; leaves large, oblong, or the lower spatulate-oval and tapering into a margined petiole, serrate, veiny; heads numerous; scales obtuse or acute; disk-flowers 16--24, the rays 12--16.--Rocky and wooded hills, Maine and W. Vt. to Penn., Ohio, and the mountains of Va.; rather rare.