Upland prairies, loess hill prairies, glades, rich upland forests. Scattered to common in the Glaciated and Unglaciated Plains of northern and western Missouri mostly absent elsewhere. Typically blooms white to pale pink or bluish-tinged, August–November. Grows in fens, margins of sinkhole ponds, bottomland prairies, and other, usually moist place. Uncommon, occurring mostly in southern Missouri introduced in the city of St. Typically blooms purplish blue to lavender, August–November. It may hybridize with both, creating plants with intermediate characteristics. cordifolium), and in drier sites it sometimes occurs with white arrowleaf aster ( S. In wetter sites, it sometimes grows with blue wood aster ( S. Scattered nearly statewide, in a wide variety of habitats. Bottomland forests, rich upland forests, banks of streams and rivers, bases and ledges of bluffs. Typically blooms pink to pale purple, August–September. This species at first seems to have no petal-like ray florets, but actually there are several rows of them, with the petal portion of each poorly developed. Native to western and northern states introduced, collected in Missouri only once, along a railroad in Clay County. Typically blooms purple to blue (rarely white), July–November. Involucral bracts are reflexed (bent backward), and the leaves are soft. Scattered, mostly in the Ozarks and eastern half of northern Missouri, especially in glades, upland prairies and woodlands, and other dry, rocky areas. Twenty-four species of New World asters in genus Symphyotrichum have been recorded for Missouri: For accurate identification of individual species, we recommend volume 2 of Steyermark’s Flora of Missouri (Yatskievych, 2006). To identify the various species of New World asters, you must look at a variety of characters, including details of the basal, lower, and upper stem leaves the hairiness of the plant and the types of hairs, if present the shape, configuration, and other details of the involucral bracts (the leafy scales under the flowerheads) and the measurements of various plant parts. The yellow disk flowers at the center of the flowerheads typically turn reddish over time. Also, both ray and disk flowers may change color as they mature and age. Thus the flower color is not as helpful as you might hope. For example, a typically bluish-flowering species may occasionally have individuals that bloom white, or vice versa.

Although each species most commonly occurs in a particular color form, individual plants within each species may have an unusual color. This page serves to introduce Missouri’s native asters as a group.ĭepending on the species, the ray flowers of our native asters may be lavender, pink, bluish, or white. (Only two species are taprooted annuals, and these are introduced and rare to uncommon.) The flower clusters are usually relatively elongated (not appearing flat-topped). Most are perennial herbs growing from short, stout rhizomes, with 1 or a few upright stems. They can be difficult to identify to species. New England aster tends to loose its lower leaves as bloom time approaches so plant it with shorter plants such as black-eyed Susan, other asters and ferns.Missouri has 24 species of New World asters. New England Aster is a larval source for the Pearl Crescent Butterfly. These plants are also great sources of food for humming birds and butterflies. In fact a pretty fall bouquet is goldenrod, red cardinal flower and New England aster, providing the flowers all come from your garden. It is an excellent companion to goldenrod, red cardinal flower and white turtlehead. New England aster is easily propagated from seed. The plant grows to about 3 to 4 feet but you can control the height by cutting it back in June. Use it at the back of a border or in the center of a bed garden. New England aster likes sun but also thrives in filtered shade. New England aster is drought tolerant but also naturally grows in wet meadows. In the early spring when they are blooming New England aster is just peeking out of the ground. The early flowering plants such as trillium and Virginia Bluebells grow right along side it. After the spring ephemerals have gone dormant New England Aster does its thing.

I use it in a woodland setting in a filtered shaded area to over plant a woodland bed. Long neglected for use in American gardens, Europeans have used it for many years. New England aster is a must for the sunny border.

White heath aster seedlings