The green links below add additional plants to the comparison table. Blue links lead to other Web sites.
enable glossary links

aster à rameaux étalés, white wood-aster

mountain aster, mountain wood aster

Habit Plants 28–90(–120) cm, in ± dense clones (lacking sterile rosettes); rhizomes branched, elongate, becoming woody. Plants 25–80 cm; forming ± dense clones (lacking sterile rosettes); rhizomes elongate, thin, woody with age.
Stems

1, erect, simple, flexuous, glabrate to sparsely puberulent proximally, densely puberulent distally.

1, erect, simple, flexuous, proximally glabrous or villous, more densely villous distally.

Leaves

basal and cauline, thin, margins sharply serrate, teeth (6–15 per side) mucronulate, ciliate, apices acuminate, abaxial faces sparsely strigose or villous, particularly villous along veins, adaxial glabrescent to sparsely strigose, veins sparsely stipitate-glandular;

basal and proximal withering by flowering, petiolate (petioles 20–70 mm), blades ovate, 19–65 × 17–60 mm, basal smaller than proximal, bases cordate (sinuses narrow, curved);

cauline petiolate, petioles often ± winged (15–70 mm), blades ovate, 20–200 × 10–100 mm, bases cordate to rounded;

distal (arrays) usually sessile, sometimes subpetiolate, blades ovate to lanceolate, 5–20 × 1–8 mm, bases rounded.

basal and cauline, thin, margins ± sharply serrate, teeth (6–20 per side) mucronulate, strigoso-ciliate, apices acuminate, abaxial faces glabrous or sparsely villous, adaxial sparsely strigose, long-stipitate-glandular (black) along veins;

basal and proximal cauline withering by flowering, long-petiolate, blades widely ovate, basal smaller than proximal, bases cordate to subcordate (sinuses narrow);

cauline long (10–50 mm) petiolate, wingless or increasingly winged distally, blades ovate, 30–110 × 11–64 mm, bases cordate (proximal) to rounded or rounded-cuneate (distal);

distal (arrays) sessile or short (0–11 mm), widely-winged petiolate, blades ovate, 8–38 × 5–23 mm.

Peduncles

to 1.5 cm, densely hairy, eglandular;

bracts 0(–2).

(subtended by ± reduced distal leaves, longest more than 1.5 cm) villous, eglandular;

bracts 0(–1), abruptly smaller than leaves, 2–2.5 × 1–1.5 mm, sometimes subtending heads.

Involucres

cylindro-campanulate, 4.2–6 mm, much shorter than pappi.

campanulate, 6.5–9(–10) mm, shorter than pappi.

Ray florets

5–10(–12);

corollas white, 6–12 × 1.5–2.2 mm.

(8–)12–16(–20);

corollas usually white, sometimes lilac-tinged, (10–)17–18(–20) × 2.6–3.3 mm.

Disc florets

12–19(–25);

corollas yellow, 4.1–4.8(–5.5) mm, abruptly ampliate, tubes (2.3–2.6 mm) longer than campanulate throats (0.9–1.2 mm), lobes reflexed, lanceolate, 0.7–1.4 mm.

(12–)17–26;

corollas yellow, 5.6–6.1 mm, abruptly ampliate, tubes (3–3.6 mm) longer than campanulate throats (0.7–1.1 mm), lobes reflexed, lanceolate, 1.5–2 mm.

Phyllaries

25–30 in 4–5 series, inner purplish distally, oblong (outer) to lanceolate or linear-lanceolate (inner), strongly unequal, bases indurate, green zones in distal 1/2 (outer) to 1/3 or along distal midveins (inner), margins narrowly scarious, densely fimbriate-ciliate, apices rounded to acute, faces sparsely hairy, sometimes sparsely stipitate-glandular;

outer 0.7–1.5 mm wide, lengths seldom more than 2.5 times widths.

ca. 27 in 4–5 series, ovate or oblong (outer) to oblong-lanceolate or lanceolate (inner), strongly unequal, membranous, bases indurate, pale green zones on less than distal 1/4 (outer, a few sometimes more than 1/2) to 1/6 or none (inner), margins not scarious, entire or slightly erose, often purplish distally (inner), densely villoso-ciliate, apices obtuse to acute, abaxial faces glabrous or sparsely villous, eglandular.

Heads

4–50(–100+) in ± flat-topped corymbiform arrays.

3–25+ in open, corymbiform arrays.

Cypselae

brown, cylindro-obovoid, slightly compressed, 2.6–3.8 mm, ribs 7–10 (tan to stramineous), faces sparsely strigillose;

pappi of reddish to cream-colored (fine, barbellulate, sometimes apically ± clavate) bristles 3.7–5 mm, equaling or longer than disc corollas.

tan to brown, fusiform to cylindro-obovoid, slightly compressed, 3.3–3.5 mm, ribs 7–10, stramineous, faces glabrate to sparsely strigillose;

pappi of pale cinnamon (fine, barbellulate) bristles 6.2–6.3 mm, equaling to longer than disc florets.

2n

= 18.

= 36, 45.

Eurybia divaricata

Eurybia chlorolepis

Phenology Flowering late summer–fall. Flowering late summer–fall.
Habitat Dry to mesic, eastern deciduous and mixed deciduous woods, edges and clearings, roadsides High elevation Appalachian red spruce–Fraser fir and cool mixed forests
Elevation 0–1200(–1700) m (0–3900(–5600) ft) 1200–2000 m (3900–6600 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
AL; CT; DC; DE; GA; KY; MA; MD; ME; MI; NC; NH; NJ; NY; OH; PA; RI; SC; TN; VA; VT; WV; ON; QC [Introduced in Europe (Netherlands)]
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
GA; NC; SC; TN; VA
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Eurybia divaricata is a mainly Appalachian element of the eastern North American deciduous forest. It is often confused with Eurybia chlorolepis (see W. F. Lamboy 1992 for distinction between the two species), E. schreberi, or Symphyotrichum cordifolium. Lamboy provided a map of the species.

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

Eurybia chlorolepis is known only from the Blue Ridge physiographic province. It is possibly extirpated at the southern end of its range in Georgia, South Carolina, and Tennessee, and it is vulnerable elsewhere. It was mapped by W. F. Lamboy (1992), who showed its distinctness from E. divaricata using morphometric and cytologic data.

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

Source FNA vol. 20, p. 374. FNA vol. 20, p. 374.
Parent taxa Asteraceae > tribe Astereae > Eurybia Asteraceae > tribe Astereae > Eurybia
Sibling taxa
E. avita, E. chlorolepis, E. compacta, E. conspicua, 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
E. avita, E. compacta, 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 divaricatus, Aster boykinii, Aster castaneus, Aster corymbosus, Aster corymbosus var. alatus, Aster excavatus, Aster flexilis, Aster stilettiformis, Aster tenebrosus, Biotia corymbosa, Biotia corymbosa var. alata, Biotia macrophylla var. divaricata, E. corymbosa Aster chlorolepis, Aster divaricatus var. chlorolepis
Name authority (Linnaeus) G. L. Nesom: Phytologia 77: 259. (1995) (E. S. Burgess) G. L. Nesom: Phytologia 77: 259. (1995)
Web links