compass flower

The compass flower is a perennial herbaceous plant similar in appearance to a sunflower. Its stems are covered in bristly-hairs and its alternately arranged leaves are deeply pinnately lobed. It is a North American native found growing in the middle of the continent. See a distribution map here http://plants.usda.gov/java/profile?symbol=SILA3 "Compass plants are so named because they tend to align their foliage North - South to present the minimum surface area to the hot noon sunshine."