Symphyotrichum chilense |
Symphyotrichum georgianum |
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common California aster, common California or Pacific aster, Pacific aster |
Georgia aster |
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Habit | Perennials, 40–100(–120) cm, colonial or cespitose; long-rhizomatous. | Perennials, 50–100 cm, colonial; rhizomatous, woody. |
Stems | 1–5+, ascending or erect, glabrous or hirsute. |
1–5+, erect, straight (± stout, light to dark brown), proximally sparsely to moderately short-strigose, distally densely so, stipitate-glandular. |
Leaves | thin, margins entire, apices usually acute, faces glabrous or sparsely puberulent; basal withering by flowering, petiolate, blades (linear-)oblanceolate to obovate, 30–200 × 4–40 mm, bases attenuate, margins entire to finely serrate, apices acute; proximalmost cauline sometimes withering by flowering, sessile, blades broadly to narrowly oblanceolate, 40–150 × 5–30 mm, bases usually ± attenuate or cuneate; distal sessile, blades lanceolate to oblanceolate, 25–90 × 5–30 mm, bases cuneate. |
(dark green) thick, firm, margins revolute (sometimes ± undulate), scabrous; basal early deciduous, sessile or subpetiolate, blades spatulate to obovate [size unknown], bases cuneate, margins entire to ± serrate, apices acute, faces finely scabrous; proximal cauline withering by flowering, sessile, blades (adaxially obscurely veined) oblong to lanceolate or narrowly obovate to oblanceolate, proximalmost ± pandurate, 20–70 × 10–20 mm, gradually reduced distally, bases auriculate-clasping, margins entire, finely scabrous, faces finely scabrous, stipitate-glandular; distal sessile, blades lanceolate to oblanceolate, 14–50 × 6–11 mm, reduced distally (much smaller on branches and grading ± abruptly into bracts), bases ± auriculate-clasping to subclasping, margins entire, apices mucronate to white-spinulose, faces scabrous, sometimes sparsely to moderately stipitate-glandular. |
Peduncles | puberulent, bracts 3–10, lanceolate to elliptic, margins often scabrous to ciliolate. |
densely short-strigose, ± densely short-stipitate-glandular, bracts 1–8+, spreading to reflexed, linear to narrowly oblong-lanceolate, strigillose, stipitate-glandular, grading into phyllaries. |
Involucres | campanulate, 5–8 mm. |
campanulate to hemispheric, 8–10 mm. |
Ray florets | 15–40; corollas violet, laminae 9–15 × 1.5–2.5 mm. |
12–24; corollas lavender violet to dark reddish purple, laminae 14–24 × 1.5–3.5 mm. |
Disc florets | 35–60+; corollas yellow, 4–8 mm, lobes triangular, 0.5–1 mm. |
20–40; corollas white with purplish lobes, 7–9 mm, throats cylindro-funnelform (sparsely pilose), lobes narrowly triangular, 0.7–1.5 mm (sparsely glandular). |
Phyllaries | in 3–5 series, oblanceolate or oblong (outer) to linear (inner), unequal to subequal (outer usually shorter than inner, if so, lengths less than 3 times widths), bases scarious (outer) less than 1/2 or sometimes wholly foliaceous, inner scarious, margins eciliate or ciliolate, green zones oblanceolate to obovate or linear (innermost), apices (outer) obtuse, (inner) acute, faces glabrous or puberulent. |
in 4–7 series, spatulate-oblong to lanceolate, unequal, innermost linear-lanceolate, bases tan, ± indurate in proximal 1/3–1/2, margins hyaline, not (outer) to narrowly scarious, strigoso- or hispido-ciliate, sometimes also stipitate-glandular (foliaceous apices), green zones lanceolate-spatulate, covering distal 1/2 or less, foliaceous apically, apices acute (outer) to acuminate or ± caudate (inner), spreading or reflexed (longer, inner), often purplish, faces moderately strigillose, stipitate-glandular. |
Heads | in open, paniculiform arrays, some branches at least 20+ cm. |
in narrow, racemiform to ± broad, paniculiform arrays, sometimes borne singly on branches, branches initially patent then ascending, leafy. |
Cypselae | brown, cylindric to obovoid, not compressed, 3.5–4.5 mm, 2–4-nerved, faces hairy; pappi white to tawny, 4–8 mm. |
gray-brown, narrowly obovoid, compressed, 2.5–4 mm, 7–10-nerved, faces sparsely strigose; pappi tan to tawny, 9–11 mm. |
2n | = 48, 64, 96. |
= 50. |
Symphyotrichum chilense |
Symphyotrichum georgianum |
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Phenology | Flowering Jul–Sep. | Flowering Oct–Nov. |
Habitat | Grasslands, salt marshes, coastal dunes and bluffs, coastal grasslands and scrub, open disturbed habitats in evergreen and Pacific coast coniferous forest | Sandy and clay soils, oak-pine woodlands, road embankments (mostly Piedmont) |
Elevation | 0–500 m (0–1600 ft) | 0–300 m (0–1000 ft) |
Distribution |
CA; OR; WA; BC
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AL; FL; GA; NC; SC |
Discussion | Symphyotrichum chilense is restricted to coastal habitats from southwestern British Columbia to central California. It is almost entirely coastal in Oregon, Washington, and southern British Columbia, where it is mainly hexaploid (2n = 48). In Oregon, where it is sympatric with S. subspicatum, the latter is mainly duodecaploid (2n = 96). The distinction does not hold in British Columbia, however, where S. subspicatum is both 2n = 48 and 96, and where S. chilense is less common (G. A. Allen 1984). The species was erroneously thought by Nees to occur in Chile. The plants named Aster chilensis var. medius Jepson are hybrids of S. chilense and S. lentum. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Of conservation concern. Symphyotrichum georgianum is disjunct and rare in southwestern Georgia and Leon County, Florida. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Source | FNA vol. 20, p. 536. | FNA vol. 20, p. 490. |
Parent taxa | Asteraceae > tribe Astereae > Symphyotrichum > subg. Symphyotrichum > sect. Occidentales | Asteraceae > tribe Astereae > Symphyotrichum > subg. Virgulus |
Sibling taxa | ||
Synonyms | Aster chilensis, Aster chilensis var. invenustus | Aster georgianus, Aster patens var. georgianus, Virgulus georgianus, Virgulus patens var. georgianus |
Name authority | (Nees) G. L. Nesom: Phytologia 77: 277. (1995) | (Alexander) G. L. Nesom: Phytologia 77: 282. (1995) |
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