FNA: Eurybia compacta

	Eurybia compacta
	slender aster
Habit	Plants 15–50(–70) cm, in clumps, eglandular; caudices thickened, woody, ovoid to spheric.
Stems	1–8+, erect, simple, strict, glabrescent, usually ± densely villous distally.
Leaves	basal and cauline, thick, firm (only midnerves conspicuous), margins entire or nearly so, indurate, scabrous, apices indurate, mucronate, faces scabrous (especially distal) to sometimes glabrous, adaxial sometimes villous (especially proximal) at least along midnerves; basal often withering by flowering (bases sometimes marcescent), petioles erect, longer than blades, bases sheathing, winged, ciliate, blades narrowly elliptic to ovate or obovate, 20–70 × 8–20 mm, bases cuneate, margins sometimes crenulate-serrulate, teeth mucronate, apices obtuse to rounded; cauline usually sessile, sometimes subsessile (ascending), lanceolate to oblanceolate, 15–80(–90) × 2.5–12 mm, bases sheathing to auriculate-clasping (distal), apices acute.
Peduncles	slender, villous; bracts 1–2, often 1 near heads, leaflike (bases sometimes indurate and white as in phyllaries).
Involucres	cylindro-campanulate, 6.5–9 mm, slightly shorter than pappi.
Ray florets	(5–)8–14; corollas blue-violet to rose-purple or bluish, often pale, 5–8(–10) × 1–1.8 mm.
Disc florets	10–20; corollas pale yellow, 5.5–6.2 mm, not ampliate, tubes longer than narrowly funnelform throats, lobes triangular, 0.65–0.9 mm.
Phyllaries	24–35 in 4–5 series, oblong (outer) to lanceolate (inner), unequal, coriaceous (outer) to membranous (inner), bases indurate, rounded (outer), margins hyaline, narrowly scarious, ± erose, ciliate (outer), apices reflexed, green (except innermost), purple-margined, less scarious, rounded or obtuse (outer) to acuminate (inner), mucronate, abaxial faces glabrous or obscurely puberulent, eglandular.
Heads	3–55+ in flat-topped, corymbiform arrays, branches ascending, slender.
Cypselae	stramineous, cylindro-obconic, 1.75–2.6 mm, ribs 9–12 (crowded), faces glabrate to strigillose; pappi of tawny to cinnamon bristles 5.9–6.2 mm, equaling disc corollas.
2n	= 18.

	Eurybia compacta
Phenology	Flowering midsummer–early fall.
Habitat	Dry, sandy places, dry to moist pinelands, oak-thickets, bogs, barrens
Elevation	0–200 m (0–700 ft)
Distribution	DE; GA; MD; NC; NJ; SC; VA [WildflowerSearch map] [BONAP county map]
Discussion	Eurybia compacta may be extirpated from much of its original range (Georgia, Maryland, South Carolina, Virginia) and may now be of conservation concern. It is present on the Atlantic coastal plains and outer Piedmont. A. Cronquist (1980) stated that it approaches E. surculosa on one hand, and E. avita and E. paludosa on the other. This reflects the close affinity between sections Calliastrum and Heleastrum (see above). I have seen no voucher for the Alabama report. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Source	FNA vol. 20, p. 377.
Parent taxa	Asteraceae > tribe Astereae > Eurybia
Sibling taxa	E. avita, E. chlorolepis, E. conspicua, E. divaricata, E. eryngiifolia, E. furcata, E. hemispherica, E. integrifolia, E. jonesiae, E. macrophylla, E. merita, E. mirabilis, E. paludosa, E. radula, E. radulina, E. saxicastelli, E. schreberi, E. sibirica, E. spectabilis, E. spinulosa, E. surculosa, E. ×herveyi
Synonyms	Aster gracilis, Aster surculosus var. gracilis
Name authority	G. L. Nesom: Phytologia 77: 259. (1995)
Web links	Local Web sites: MD Biodiversity WildflowerSearch iNaturalist (observations) USDA Plants Database LBJ Wildflower Center SEINet Plants of the World Online Encyclopedia of Life Wikipedia Google Image Search

Eurybia compacta

slender aster

Habit

Plants 15–50(–70) cm, in clumps, eglandular; caudices thickened, woody, ovoid to spheric.

Stems

1–8+, erect, simple, strict, glabrescent, usually ± densely villous distally.

Leaves

basal and cauline, thick, firm (only midnerves conspicuous), margins entire or nearly so, indurate, scabrous, apices indurate, mucronate, faces scabrous (especially distal) to sometimes glabrous, adaxial sometimes villous (especially proximal) at least along midnerves;

basal often withering by flowering (bases sometimes marcescent), petioles erect, longer than blades, bases sheathing, winged, ciliate, blades narrowly elliptic to ovate or obovate, 20–70 × 8–20 mm, bases cuneate, margins sometimes crenulate-serrulate, teeth mucronate, apices obtuse to rounded;

cauline usually sessile, sometimes subsessile (ascending), lanceolate to oblanceolate, 15–80(–90) × 2.5–12 mm, bases sheathing to auriculate-clasping (distal), apices acute.

Peduncles

slender, villous;

bracts 1–2, often 1 near heads, leaflike (bases sometimes indurate and white as in phyllaries).

Involucres

cylindro-campanulate, 6.5–9 mm, slightly shorter than pappi.

Ray florets

(5–)8–14;

corollas blue-violet to rose-purple or bluish, often pale, 5–8(–10) × 1–1.8 mm.

Disc florets

10–20;

corollas pale yellow, 5.5–6.2 mm, not ampliate, tubes longer than narrowly funnelform throats, lobes triangular, 0.65–0.9 mm.

Phyllaries

24–35 in 4–5 series, oblong (outer) to lanceolate (inner), unequal, coriaceous (outer) to membranous (inner), bases indurate, rounded (outer), margins hyaline, narrowly scarious, ± erose, ciliate (outer), apices reflexed, green (except innermost), purple-margined, less scarious, rounded or obtuse (outer) to acuminate (inner), mucronate, abaxial faces glabrous or obscurely puberulent, eglandular.

Heads

3–55+ in flat-topped, corymbiform arrays, branches ascending, slender.

Cypselae

stramineous, cylindro-obconic, 1.75–2.6 mm, ribs 9–12 (crowded), faces glabrate to strigillose;

pappi of tawny to cinnamon bristles 5.9–6.2 mm, equaling disc corollas.

= 18.

Eurybia compacta

Phenology

Flowering midsummer–early fall.

Habitat

Dry, sandy places, dry to moist pinelands, oak-thickets, bogs, barrens

Elevation

0–200 m (0–700 ft)

Distribution

DE; GA; MD; NC; NJ; SC; VA

[WildflowerSearch map]

[BONAP county map]

Discussion

Eurybia compacta may be extirpated from much of its original range (Georgia, Maryland, South Carolina, Virginia) and may now be of conservation concern. It is present on the Atlantic coastal plains and outer Piedmont. A. Cronquist (1980) stated that it approaches E. surculosa on one hand, and E. avita and E. paludosa on the other. This reflects the close affinity between sections Calliastrum and Heleastrum (see above). I have seen no voucher for the Alabama report.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Source

FNA vol. 20, p. 377.

Parent taxa

Asteraceae > tribe Astereae > Eurybia

Sibling taxa

E. avita, E. chlorolepis, E. conspicua, E. divaricata, E. eryngiifolia, E. furcata, E. hemispherica, E. integrifolia, E. jonesiae, E. macrophylla, E. merita, E. mirabilis, E. paludosa, E. radula, E. radulina, E. saxicastelli, E. schreberi, E. sibirica, E. spectabilis, E. spinulosa, E. surculosa, E. ×herveyi

Synonyms

Aster gracilis, Aster surculosus var. gracilis

Name authority

G. L. Nesom: Phytologia 77: 259. (1995)

Web links

Unless otherwise noted, all data comes from the online version of the Flora of North America, who have made most of their content available via a Creative Commons license (CC BY 4.0).

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Eurybia compacta

Eurybia compacta