Well, definitely a helianthus,perhaps h. divaricatus. The woodland edges are bursting with similar blooms here in North Georgia right now. The leaves are very rough, I presume?

Here is a link that might be useful: Your link

If you mean the feel, no the leaves are smooth. I looked up h. divaricatus and the leaves on it seem thin. unfortunately, the plant has wilted so bad, I can't tell what the flower actually looks like :(
Thanks for posting the link, it wouldn't let me do it while posting.

Terry

I was thinking maybe helianthus tuberosus?

Interesting; not many helianthus species have smooth leaves -- in fact, the only one I can think of off the top of my head is H. eggertii, and that's a rarity found mostly in TN and has a very different leaf form from your plant. Just offhand it looks like H. tuberosa, Jerusalem Artichoke. H. tuberosa likes moist areas, so a ditch is likely habitat for that species. Was there a patch of it, meaning multiple stems rising from different points, not just one crown? That would suggest H. tuberosa, too. This species has thick, rough-to-the-touch leaves, though. If the plant is still halfway together, run you fingers from the leaf tip toward the stem both top and underside. That's the best way to assess the potential roughness. Do note whether it's rough on just one side or both, and which side. Helps with ID. Check also to see whether the stem is hairy or smooth.

H. giganteus is another possibility. It has rough leaves, too.

FYI, helianthus are typically IDed by leaf/stem/petiole and other vegetative features rather than bloom. Most of them have very similar flowers, the only readily obvious bloom differences being disc color (a few species have dark discs, most have yellow). So any leaf and stem info you can glean helps mightily with ID.

Soeur

Terry, you can post the link on the second page of an original post. That is the page where you can preview your post and make any corrections. If you scroll down you can see that one of the changes you can make is to enter an optional link URL.

Most of the helianthus are known for rough leaves, including h. tuberosus, so I doubt it is that either.

Perhaps False Sunflower, Heliopsis helianthoides.

Thanks, esh, I never scrolled down far enough :)

I should say that it's at the top of the ditch or ravine, really. If I can get out there tomorrow, I will try to get a better picture of it growing, instead of me just "picking" one. The lane was pretty much built over the top of the ravine, using the one place that was somewhat higher..you drive down a level long lane, then turn and dip way down and back up to the level ground...it's pretty steep off on both sides of the lane....if that makes any sense..lol..

The piece I plucked is so wilted, you can't get a really good feeling of the leaves. I had it across my lap, wearing shorts, so it was against my legs, and I really didn't notice any roughness to it. I will try to get a better picture...I do know though, that the leaves are alternate...ain't I smart! I've learned that much...alternate or opposite!!

Thanks everyone,

Terry

P.S. does anyone have a really sure fire way to ease a terrible backache?? The muscles in my lower back....and the pain in between my shoulders....ugh. I hurt....

Helianthus tuberosus seems most likely from what I can see in the pictures; if the leaves are really hairless, though, that'd be a problem.

BTW, curing a backache is easy. Just break your arm--won't notice your back anymore!

Patrick Alexander

Robaxacet

My camera is a very old digital...and it barely zooms...but I'll do my best to get another picture.

What's Robaxacet?

I don't want to break my arm, thanks anyway. My husband yelled at me because of my lower back and neck...I told him what I did...and he said I could have fallen and broke my arm....I'll tell him you actually suggest it to cure my backache Patrick! :)

Hairy leaves? Just as it sounds? I know I sound really stupid....:)

Robaxacet good...... Soma better.... at least in my case.

Robaxacet? Soma? What are they?

For your back.

Maybe a shot of Jim Beam would do it as well.... but I'm not a Doctor.

Are they pills? Prescription? Or booze? Not a drinker, otherwise, trust me, I would have had one by now!

Terry

"Hairy leaves? Just as it sounds? I know I sound really stupid....:)"

Yup, just like it sounds, tiny little hairs on the leaves. "Hairy" isn't a complicated enough word, though, so botanists usually use "pubescent", and then for "hairless" we have "glabrous".

Patrick Alexander

gosh, is garden web having a problem? I've been trying to get on for over an hour!

pubescent and glabrous. Yea, everyone knows those words. And understands them. (this is where my tongue would be sticking out) :)

If it helps you remember, puberty is when boys & girls become pubescent, if you get my drift... actually "pubescent" means, literally, "becoming adult" and is associated with hair for precisely that reason...

The etymology of "glabrous" isn't half as interesting, unfortunately.

Patrick Alexander

can't help on the id, but your pain you are describing is computeritis!

Patrick, I just meant that the words aren't something you hear everyday...I already figured out the pubescent one ;) Except I won't remember pubescent, I'll say instead, ya know, like puberty? When you get hairy :)

Fairy, I wish it was only computeritis....I wouldn't have sat on my a$$ all day then....resting it is the only way to get rid of it for me. Unless of course, I try vicadin (sp?) or something....

sorry for assuming, terry! that is how i feel when i have sat here too long. add neck pain, but now that i reread, you are likely more severe!

hmmmmmm. a warm bath soak? massage? chiropractor? that is all short of prescription. do you get migraines?

No, no migraines. unfortunately, our insurance doesn't pay for chiropractor care. I wish it did...that would help alot!

Hey, I got this link from a friend...check it out

Here is a link that might be useful: Natural gardens