Dig deeper at SERNEC, a consortium of southeastern herbaria.

Stemless Ironweed gets it name from the near lack of leaves on the stem, making it appear to be (but not actually) a long flower stalk. Read more at Vascular Plants of North Carolina.

The acaulescent species of Elephantopus are easily and often confused with Vernonia acaulis, especially when sterile. Vernonia has leaves scabrous above and sparsely pilose to glabrate beneath; Elephantopus has leaves sparely pilose above, densely pilose or tomentose below. Vernonia leaves tend to have a more acute apex, and the veins above are more strikingly differentiated in their color (white or pink) from the adjacent leaf tissue. When in flower, the presence of subtending foliose bracts below the compound glomerule of heads in Elephantopus (versus the absence of foliose bracts below the simple head in Vernonia) is diagnostic, per Weakley's Flora (2022)

SYNONYMOUS WITH PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Vernonia acaulis   FAMILY Asteraceae__

SYNONYMOUS WITH VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 179-27-001:

Vernonia acaulis   FAMILY Asteraceae__

COMMON NAME:
Stemless Ironweed, Carolina Ironweed, Flatwoods Ironweed

WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/24/22):
Vernonia acaulis   FAMILY Asteraceae__

SYNONYMOUS WITH PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Vernonia acaulis   FAMILY Asteraceae__

SYNONYMOUS WITH VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 179-27-001:
Vernonia acaulis   FAMILY Asteraceae__