Eurybia spectabilis |
Eurybia saxicastelli |
|
---|---|---|
eastern showy aster, purple wood-aster, western showy aster |
rockcastle aster |
|
Habit | Plants 10–90 cm; forming clones and clumps with rosettes, new shoots at end of rhizomes and bases of old stems; rhizomes elongate, scaly, herbaceous becoming woody. | Plants 40–120 cm; in clones; rhizomes elongate, strong. |
Stems | 1–3, erect or sometimes ascending, straight, often stout, sometimes glabrous or glabrescent, usually ± sparsely villous proximally and/or distally, proximally eglandular to ± short-stipitate-glandular, distally glandular from 1/2–2/3, short- and long-stipitate-glandular in arrays. |
1, erect, strict (slightly flexuous distally), simple, glabrous, distally ± villosulous (arrays). |
Leaves | basal and cauline, firm (reticulately veined), margins slightly revolute, indurate, entire or remotely crenulate-serrulate, scabrous, teeth indurate, apices acute (seldom basal obtuse), indurate, faces usually scabrous (especially abaxially), sometimes glabrous; basal and proximal cauline persistent, petioles (10–90 mm) ± narrowly winged (wings wider and shorter distally), bases sometimes marcescent, blades lanceolate or elliptic to ovate- or obovate-elliptic or spatulate, 10–160 × 3–40 mm (earlier leaves smallest), bases attenuate; mid widely winged-petiolate to subpetiolate or sessile, blades elliptic-lanceolate, ovate, or ± narrowly obovate to spatulate, oblanceolate, or lanceolate, 13–105 × (2–)5–30 mm, ± gradually reduced distally, bases attenuate or cuneate, sometimes ± clasping or sheathing (proximal); distal (arrays) sessile, oblong or narrowly ovate to linear-lanceolate or linear, 6–40 × 1–11 mm, usually abruptly reduced, becoming ± glandular. |
cauline; proximal withering by flowering, narrowly winged-petiolate, blades broadly oblanceolate or elliptic to obovate, smaller than mid; mid and distal winged-petiolate (5–30 mm), broadly elliptic to oblanceolate, (70–)90–140 × 40–50(–60) mm, reduced distally, bases cuneate, with 4–5 pairs of marked veins, margins coarsely serrate (teeth 1–4 mm), slightly revolute, scabrous, apices acuminate; abaxial faces glabrescent, adaxial sparsely pilose, mainly on veins. |
Peduncles | sometimes sparsely villous, densely stipitate-glandular; bracts (0–)1–3, leaflike or sometimes phyllary-like (bases rounded, membranous, indurate), sometimes immediately subtending heads, densely stipitate-glandular. |
sparsely pilose; bracts 0–1, foliaceous, remotely serrulate. |
Involucres | campanulate, 7.5–14(–16) mm, ± equaling pappi. |
campanulate, 7–11 mm, shorter than pappi. |
Ray florets | 15–35; corollas violet-purple, 12–25 × 1.6–4 mm. |
10–30; corollas pale white to pale blue, 10–15 × 1.5–2 mm. |
Disc florets | 25–55; corollas yellow, 5.5–7.6 mm, ± ampliate, tubes shorter than funnelform throats, lobes erect, lanceolate, 0.7–1.2 mm. |
10–20; corollas yellow turning pinkish, ca. 4.5–5 mm, tubes longer than funnelform throats, lobes spreading, triangular, ca. 1.5 mm. |
Phyllaries | 35–70 in 5–6 series, oblong-lanceolate to sometimes spatulate (outer) to linear-lanceolate or linear (inner), unequal, membranous or sometimes foliaceous (outer), bases indurate, rounded (outer), green zones expanded, ovate to obovate (outer, sometimes foliaceous to base) or diffusely lanceolate or none (inner), margins of membranous parts hyaline or ± purplish (inner), narrowly scarious, villoso-ciliate or long-stipitate-glandular, of foliaceous parts ± indurate, scabrous or short-stipitate-glandular, apices squarrose (outer) to ± appressed (innermost), acute to obtuse, adaxial faces long-stipitate-glandular (foliaceous parts). |
32–36 in 4–5 series, broadly oblong, strongly unequal, scarious, dark green zones wide, from 1/2 distally, margins hyaline, narrow, erose, densely ciliate, apices appressed or often slightly squarrose, obtuse to subacute, faces glabrous, eglandular. |
Heads | (1–)3–35+ usually in open, corymbiform arrays, seldom borne singly, branches ascending, stout. |
1–10, borne singly or in corymbiform arrays. |
Cypselae | brown, fusiform, slightly compressed, 3–4.2 mm, ribs 12–14, faces densely strigillose; pappi of reddish-tawnish bristles 5.3–7.6 mm, ± equaling disc corollas. |
tan, fusiform, cylindric, 5–6 mm, ribs 7–11, stramineous, faces ± strigose; pappi of pale stramineous (clavate) bristles 5–7 mm, shorter than to ± equaling disc corollas. |
2n | = 72. |
= 54. |
Eurybia spectabilis |
Eurybia saxicastelli |
|
Phenology | Flowering fall. | Flowering late summer–fall. |
Habitat | Mostly sandy soils, sometimes dry clay, granite outcrops, dry, oak-pine woods, pine barrens, peat bogs, borders of woods, clearings, fields, roadsides | Back edge of spring-flooded, summer-dry, sandstone boulder–cobble river bars with shrubby vegetation |
Elevation | 0–900 m (0–3000 ft) | (600–)1000–1500 m ((2000–)3300–4900 ft) |
Distribution |
AL; CT; DE; GA; MA; MD; NC; NJ; NY; PA; RI; SC; VA
|
KY; TN |
Discussion | Eurybia spectabilis is of conservation concern in much of its range, notably in Pennsylvania, Delaware, and Maryland. It is an eastern coastal plains species that reaches its southern limit in Alabama and Georgia. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Of conservation concern. Eurybia saxicastelli is known only from the Rockcastle River of Kentucky (J. J. N. Campbell and M. E. Medley 1989) and Tennessee. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Source | FNA vol. 20, p. 378. | FNA vol. 20, p. 372. |
Parent taxa | Asteraceae > tribe Astereae > Eurybia | Asteraceae > tribe Astereae > Eurybia |
Sibling taxa | ||
Synonyms | Aster spectabilis, Aster commixtus, Aster spectabilis var. suffultus, Biotia commixta, E. commixta | Aster saxicastelli |
Name authority | (Aiton) G. L. Nesom: Phytologia 77: 262. (1995) | (J. J. N. Campbell & Medley) G. L. Nesom: Phytologia 77: 261. (1995) |
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