Sun. Tall and coarse, like a sunflower with its showy daisy flowers held erect along stout, sticky, resinous stems. The long, deeply cut leaves avoid the heat of the noonday sun by orienting themselves in a north-south direction.
Compass plant is slow growing, with some specimens living nearly 100 years. It is one of a group of tall prairie sunflowers, including Rosinweed, Cup Plant and Prairie Dock. The nutritious seeds attract goldfinches and other birds; the sap, once hardened, can be chewed like gum.
A stately sunflower that holds its leaves pointing north and south.
