Symphyotrichum anomalum |
Symphyotrichum concolor |
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manyray aster |
eastern silver American-aster, eastern silver aster, eastern silvery aster |
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Habit | Perennials, 20–100(–120) cm, cespitose; usually with short, stout, branched caudices, woody with age, sometimes long-rhizomatous. | Perennials, 30–80 cm, cespitose; with cormoid, woody caudices. | ||||
Stems | 1–5+, erect or ascending (straight, often stout), proximally usually ± densely hirtellous, sometimes glabrescent, distally hirsute. |
1–10+, ascending to erect (light to dark brown), glabrous or densely canescent distally. |
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Leaves | thick, firm, margins (slightly undulate) scabrous, adaxial faces glabrous or strigose, scabrous, adaxial ± sparsely hirsute to scabro-hirtellous, sometimes ± scabrous (cauline sometimes with tufts of smaller leaves in axils); basal withering by flowering, petiolate (petioles sometimes narrowly winged), blades oblong-ovate to lanceolate, 10–40 × 10–20 mm, bases deeply cordate, margins sparsely serrate to serrulate, apices usually acute, sometimes obtuse to rounded; proximal cauline usually withering by flowering, petiolate (petioles slender to ± winged), blades ovate to broadly lanceolate, 40–90 × (15–) 25–50 mm, bases shallowly cordate or rounded to attenuate, rarely truncate, margins subentire or entire (rarely serrulate), apices acute or acuminate, with short callus point; distal subpetiolate or sessile, blades ovate to lanceolate or linear-lanceolate, 10–70 × 1–10 mm, gradually or abruptly reduced distally, bases attenuate to cuneate, margins entire, apices acute to acuminate. |
(green to graysih) soft to firm; basal withering by flowering, sessile, blades (1–3-nerved) elliptic-lanceolate, 10–43 × 5–15 mm, bases attenuate, margins usually entire, rarely remotely serrate, piloso-ciliate, apices acute to obtuse, faces silvery silky-pilose to sparsely pilose; proximal cauline withering by flowering, sessile, blades oblanceolate, 20–35 × 5–15 mm, bases rounded, subclasping, margins entire, scabrous to silky-pilose, apices acute to obtuse, cuspidate mucronate, faces ± densely silky; distal sessile, blades usually oblong to lanceolate, rarely ovate, 9–15 × 1.8–5 mm, reduced distally, bases cuneate, margins entire, apices acute, mucronate, faces ± densely silky or sparsely strigose, sometimes glabrate (var. devestitum). |
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Peduncles | densely bracteate, 0.3–5(–10) cm (rarely subsesssile), bracts numerous, linear, 2–6 mm, mucronulate, grading into phyllaries. |
densely hairy, bracts becoming linear, grading into phyllaries. |
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Involucres | campanulate, 5–10 mm. |
campanulate to narrowly campanulate, 5–7 mm. |
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Ray florets | 18–45; corollas usually bright lavender-blue to purple, seldom white, laminae 9–15(–18) × 1–3.2 mm. |
8–12; corollas rose-purple, rarely white, laminae 4–9 × 1–1.5 mm. |
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Disc florets | 33–40+; corollas cream or light yellow turning pinkish purple, (4–)4.5–5.5 mm, tubes shorter than funnelform throats, lobes sometimes ± spreading, triangular to lanceolate, 0.5–0.8 mm. |
(9–)11–17(–21); corollas pink turning purple, 4.5–6 mm, tubes shorter than narrowly funnelform throats (thinly puberulent), lobes triangular, 0.4–0.7 mm. |
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Phyllaries | in 4–6 series, oblong-lanceolate (outer) to oblanceolate-linear (innermost), unequal, bases indurate (appressed), margins ciliate to scabro-ciliate, green zones diamond-shaped to lanceolate, ± foliaceous distally, apices reflexed to squarrose, long-acuminate, apiculate, often purple, faces strigoso-hirtellous. |
in 3–5 series, appressed, lanceolate-oblong, strongly unequal, bases (tan) ± indurate, margins scarious proximally, green distally, green zones restricted to apex, obscured by hair, apices usually acute, sometimes acuminate, usually mucronate, sometimes subspinulose, faces ± densely silky. |
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Heads | in open, diffuse, paniculiform arrays, branches divaricate, stout, long, densely bracteate. |
in narrow, paniculiform (virgate) arrays (1–3(–5) per branch). |
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Cypselae | deep purple to purplish brown or brown with purple speckles (nerves stramineous), oblong-obovoid, compressed, (1–)2.5–3.5(–3.8) mm, 5–6-nerved, faces glabrous; pappi tawny or rose-tinged, 3.7–5.2 mm. |
obovoid, not compressed, 2.5–3.5 mm, 7–10-nerved, faces densely strigose; pappi tan, (3.5–)4–6 mm. |
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2n | = 16. |
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Symphyotrichum anomalum |
Symphyotrichum concolor |
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Phenology | Flowering late Aug–Oct. | |||||
Habitat | Dry, sandy, loamy, or clayey soils over limestone, or acid soils over chert, sandstone, or granite, rocky, open deciduous woods, thickets, dry ridges, cliffs, bluffs, occasional along streams | |||||
Elevation | 50–500 m (200–1600 ft) | |||||
Distribution |
AR; IL; KS; MO; OK
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AL; DE; FL; GA; KY; LA; MA; MD; MS; NC; NJ; NY; RI; SC; TN; VA
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Discussion | A. G. Jones (1989, 1992) reported that Symphyotrichum anomalum may hybridize with S. drummondii, S. oolentangiense, and S. shortii. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Varieties 2 (2 in the flora). (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
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Key |
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Source | FNA vol. 20, p. 504. | FNA vol. 20, p. 492. | ||||
Parent taxa | Asteraceae > tribe Astereae > Symphyotrichum > subg. Symphyotrichum > sect. Symphyotrichum | Asteraceae > tribe Astereae > Symphyotrichum > subg. Virgulus | ||||
Sibling taxa | ||||||
Subordinate taxa | ||||||
Synonyms | Aster anomalus | Aster concolor, Lasallea concolor, Virgulus concolor | ||||
Name authority | (Engelmann ex Torrey & A. Gray) G. L. Nesom: Phytologia 77: 275. (1995) | (Linnaeus) G. L. Nesom: Phytologia 77: 278. (1995) | ||||
Web links |