Symphyotrichum anomalum |
Symphyotrichum frondosum |
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manyray aster |
alkali aster, leafy annual American-aster, short-ray alkali aster, short-ray aster |
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Habit | Perennials, 20–100(–120) cm, cespitose; usually with short, stout, branched caudices, woody with age, sometimes long-rhizomatous. | Annuals or sometimes perennials, 5–140 cm. |
Stems | 1–5+, erect or ascending (straight, often stout), proximally usually ± densely hirtellous, sometimes glabrescent, distally hirsute. |
1–6+, decumbent to erect (straight), glabrous. |
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. |
thin, margins entire (basal sometimes serrulate), sometimes ciliate or remotely scabrous, acute to ± obtuse, faces glabrous; basal withering by flowering, petiolate, blades oblanceolate to spatulate, 20–115 × 2–15 mm [cult.], bases attenuate; proximal cauline withering by flowering; cauline subpetiolate or sessile (distal), blades oblanceolate to linear, 10–80 × 1.5–10 mm, reduced distally, bases cuneate. |
Peduncles | densely bracteate, 0.3–5(–10) cm (rarely subsesssile), bracts numerous, linear, 2–6 mm, mucronulate, grading into phyllaries. |
glabrous, bracts linear. |
Involucres | campanulate, 5–10 mm. |
narrowly campanulate, 5–9 mm. |
Ray florets | 18–45; corollas usually bright lavender-blue to purple, seldom white, laminae 9–15(–18) × 1–3.2 mm. |
90–110 in 4–5+ series; corollas pink to pinkish white, laminae 1.5–2 × 0.1–0.2 mm (surpassing style branches, barely surpassing disc corollas; tubes ± 3 mm). |
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. |
± 37; corollas yellow, 4.4–5.2 mm, barely ampliate, tubes much longer than cylindric limbs, lobes lanceolate, ± 0.3 mm. |
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 3–4 series, ± spreading, oblong-oblanceolate or -lanceolate to obovate, subequal to ± unequal, linear-lanceolate or linear (innermost), bases scarious, margins narrowly scarious, hyaline, erose, ciliolate, green zones (outer) foliaceous, (inner) lanceolate, apices obtuse to rounded, inner acute, mucronulate, faces glabrous. |
Heads | in open, diffuse, paniculiform arrays, branches divaricate, stout, long, densely bracteate. |
(radiate) in narrow, paniculiform to spiciform arrays, branches often in axils of nearly every leaf, ascending. |
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. |
tan, obovoid, ± compressed, 2 mm, 2–3-nerved, faces strigillose; pappi white to yellowish, 6.3–7.5 mm. |
2n | = 16. |
= 14. |
Symphyotrichum anomalum |
Symphyotrichum frondosum |
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Phenology | Flowering late Aug–Oct. | Flowering 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 | Moist, usually saline soils, summer-receding shores of lakes or ponds, vernally moist, alkaline bottoms, marshes, often in steppes |
Elevation | 50–500 m (200–1600 ft) | 10–2200 m (0–7200 ft) |
Distribution |
AR; IL; KS; MO; OK
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AZ; CA; CO; ID; NM; NV; OR; UT; WA; WY; BC; Mexico (Baja California)
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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.) |
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Source | FNA vol. 20, p. 504. | FNA vol. 20, p. 499. |
Parent taxa | Asteraceae > tribe Astereae > Symphyotrichum > subg. Symphyotrichum > sect. Symphyotrichum | Asteraceae > tribe Astereae > Symphyotrichum > subg. Symphyotrichum > sect. Conyzopsis |
Sibling taxa | ||
Synonyms | Aster anomalus | Tripolium frondosum, Aster frondosus, Brachyactis frondosa |
Name authority | (Engelmann ex Torrey & A. Gray) G. L. Nesom: Phytologia 77: 275. (1995) | (Nuttall) G. L. Nesom: Phytologia 77: 282. (1995) |
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