Plants 65-110 cm; rhizomes creeping. Stems 1-10(-50), ascending to erect, glabrous or sparsely strigillose, copiously viscid-resinous in arrays. Leaves: basal gradually tapering to winged petioles, blades oblanceolate, (25-)100-200 × (4-)15-28 mm, membranous, margins shallowly serrate apically (teeth less than 1 mm), finely ciliate, midnerves prominent, faces glabrous, viscid; rosettes present at flowering, at ends of elongated rhizomes, 1st leaves the smallest; proximal to mid cauline similar, sessile, blades linear-elliptic, quickly reduced; mid blades 40-80 × 6-9 mm, reduced distally, margins entire; distal sessile, blades linear-elliptic to linear, 10-35 × 1-3 mm, reduced in arrays. Heads 50-200 (1-15 per branch), in narrowly thyrsiform, paniculiform arrays, 9-30 × 4-5 cm, longer branches ascending, 2-10 cm. Peduncles sparsely strigillose, copiously resinous, naked proximally to bracteolate near heads; bracteoles usually 1-3. Involucres campanulate, 5-7 mm. Phyllaries in 3-4 series, strongly unequal, apices obtuse, rounded to slightly cuspidate, ciliate, sparsely, finely strigose, obscured by exudate, copiously resinous; outer ovate (1.5-2 mm), mid narrowly ovate (3-4 × 1.5 mm), inner linear-lanceolate. Ray florets 3-5(-7); laminae 2.5-3.5 × 1-1.5 mm. Disc florets 10-16; corollas 5-6 mm, lobes 1-1.5(-1.8) mm. Cypselae fusiform to narrowly obconic, 3-5 mm, ribs 5-8, golden brown, darker than intercostal portions, thin, glabrous; pappi 4-5 mm (sometimes strongly clavate). 2n = 18.

Flowering Aug-Sep. Turkey oak and pine scrub sandhills; of conservation concern; 40-100 m; Ga., S.C.

Solidago kralii is closely related to S. simplex, S. plumosa, and S. arenicola but occurs in a different habitat; it is much more copiously viscid-resinous than those species.