Because of its tendency to grow together in dense colonies and its large, showy flowering heads it is a well known western wildflower that is often photographed.

The number of bracts (phyllaries) is 18 to more than 36 and have smooth faces without hairs along the edges and the outer ones being the longest at 18–32 millimeters.

[3] Even botanical professionals will frequently say that it produces achenes and non-botanists such as gardeners will usually simply refer to these fruits as seeds.

[4][8] Each fruit is 8–9 millimeters long, four sided and has a low crown of small scales at one end.

[3][8] The taproot of Wyethia amplexicaulis is large, 4–7 centimeters (1.6–2.8 in) in diameter, and can reach depths of 1.8 meters (5 ft 11 in) into the soil.

In 1900 Thomas J. Howell published a description of Wyethia lanceolata from the Blue Mountains of Oregon.

[16] When W. amplexicaulis crosses with W. arizonica it produces the natural hybrid Wyethia × magna which is found in the central and southern parts of the Colorado's West Slope.

[24] Wyethia amplexicaulis grow most vigorously in meadows that are at least seasonally moist, but not permanently waterlogged.

[9] They grow near shadscale, sagebrush steppe, within juniper scrublands, between and in aspen groves, and in meadows in the lower montane zone.

[1] Wyethia amplexicaulis is often locally abundant, forming dense populations that are dominate or co-dominate with another species such as the grass Poa nevadensis.

[26] Wildfires also increase the number of W. amplexicaulis in the landscape in the years after the fire, though the immediate effects on plants is not yet documented.

[4] Early in the growing season the tender young foliage of Wyethia amplexicaulis is eaten by mule deer, though it is not preferred forage.

The mature leaves are coarse and dry out by mid-summer, so the plants are not much consumed later in the season.

[30] In northern Utah the bee Osmia californica collects the majority of the pollen it needs to provision its young from just three related flowers, Balsamorhiza macrophylla, Wyethia amplexicaulis, and Helianthella uniflora.

[31] Likewise the bee Osmia montana relies heavily on pollen collected from flowers in the family Asteraceae the including Wyethia amplexicaulis.

Though they provide strong early cover and growth they tend to be planted together with other wildflowers like blue flax (Linum lewisii), blanket flower (Gaillardia pulchella), or tufted evening primrose (Oenothera caespitosa) as they are vigorous in mid to late spring, but fade in the heat of summer.

They are planted by gardeners at an approximate depth of 6 millimeters either directly in the soil in their final location or in flats or pots.

Northern wyethia can also be propagated by root divisions in the fall or early spring before growth starts.