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

aster ciliolé, fringe blue aster, Lindley's American-aster, Lindley's aster, Lindley's or fringe blue aster

San Bernardino aster

Habit Perennials, (10–)20–120 cm, colonial or cespitose; usually long-rhizomatous, sometimes with branched caudices. Perennials, (30–)40–100(–150) cm, cespitose; short-rhizomatous.
Stems

1–3+, erect (straight to ± flexuous), glabrate to sparsely hirsute or strigillose, especially distally.

1–5+, ascending to erect, strigose, villous, or lanate, especially distally.

Leaves

thin, margins coarsely, sharply serrate to crenate-serrate or serrulate, ciliate to scabrous, apices acute or acuminate, mucronulate, abaxial faces glabrate to sparsely hirsute, midveins usually densely hirsute, sometimes glabrous, adaxial glabrous or glabrate to scabrellous;

basal usually withering by flowering (sometimes persistent on small plants), long-petiolate (petioles slightly winged, sheathing, ciliate), blades ovate, (24–)40–120(–270) × 15–70 mm, bases usually shallowly cordate, sometimes rounded;

proximal cauline often withering by flowering, winged-petiolate, blades ovate to oblanceolate or lanceolate, (24–)60–150 × (10–)20–60 mm, reduced distally, bases subcordate to cuneate;

distal sessile or sometimes subsessile (petioles widely-winged), blades lance-ovate to linear-lanceolate or linear, 18–75 × (2–)5–25 mm, bases cuneate, sometimes ± clasping, margins serrulate or entire.

(grayish green) thin to firm, margins entire, apices acute, faces strigose;

basal withering by flowering, petiolate, blades narrowly oblanceolate, 50–100(–150) × 4–12(–15) mm, bases attenuate, margins scabrous to ciliate;

proximalmost cauline often withering by flowering (often with tufts of leaves in axils), sessile, blades linear to narrowly oblong, 30–70(–100) × 4–8(–10) mm, bases attenuate or cuneate, apices acute;

distal sessile, blades 15–80 × 2–8(–10) mm, bases cuneate, sometimes auriculate.

Peduncles

0.2–1.5+ cm, unequal, reduced distally, ± hirsutulous, bracts 0–4, subulate or linear.

densely short-strigose, bracts 1–6, linear-oblong, strigose.

Involucres

campanulate, (4–)5–6.5 mm.

campanulate, 4–7 mm.

Ray florets

(12–)14–20;

corollas pale to deep blue or bluish purple, laminae (8.3–)10–15 × 1–2.3 mm.

15–40;

corollas pale violet, laminae 8–12(–15) × 1–1.5(–2) mm.

Disc florets

14–25(–29);

corollas yellow becoming reddish purple, 4.3–6.4 mm, tubes shorter than funnelform throats, lobes narrowly triangular, 0.5–1.1 mm.

25–70+;

corollas yellow, 4–6 mm, lobes triangular, 0.4–0.8 mm.

Phyllaries

in 4–5 series, narrowly oblong-lanceolate to oblong-oblanceolate or linear-oblanceolate (innermost), ± unequal, bases indurate 1/3–2/3, margins narrowly scarious, erose, hyaline or infrequently purplish, sparsely ciliolate, green zones lanceolate to linear-lanceolate or linear, apices acuminate to long-acuminate, faces glabrous.

in 3–6 series, narrowly oblanceolate or linear (outer) to linear (inner), unequal, bases indurate, margins entire, narrowly scarious, ciliate, green zones obovate to elliptic, apices obtuse, mucronulate, faces usually strigose.

Heads

[(6–)13–50(–100+)] in open, paniculiform arrays, branches ascending.

(3–50+) in narrowly paniculiform arrays, branches 2–10(–20) cm.

Cypselae

yellowish white, obovoid, compressed, 1–2 mm, 5–6-nerved, faces glabrate to sparsely strigillose;

pappi white to pinkish, 3–6 mm.

brown, cylindric to obovoid, not compressed, 1.5–3 mm, ribs 5–8, faces hairy;

pappi whitish, 4–6 mm.

2n

= 48.

= 36.

Symphyotrichum ciliolatum

Symphyotrichum defoliatum

Phenology Flowering late Jul–Oct. Flowering Aug–Nov.
Habitat Rich, open, often ± calcareous, boreal deciduous forests (aspen or aspen-birch-fir-spruce), edges of woods, clearings, aspen or bur oak thickets, sometimes open pine forests, streambanks, trails, roadsides Dry open grasslands and meadows, often near springs
Elevation 0–2000+ m (0–6600+ ft) 0–1700 m (0–5600 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
IL; MA; ME; MI; MN; MT; ND; NH; NY; SD; VT; WI; WY; AB; BC; MB; NB; NF; NS; NT; ON; QC; SK; YT
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
CA
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Symphyotrichum ciliolatum sporadically hybridizes with S. laeve var. laeve or var. geyeri in their areas of overlap, notably across the Canadian prairies and in south-central Ontario (Manitoulin Island, Bruce Peninsula). It also hybridizes with S. novi-belgii var. novi-belgii in the Gulf of St. Lawrence area [Symphyotrichum ×subgeminatum (Fernald) G. L. Nesom; syn. Aster subgeminatus (Fernald) B. Boivin]. Aster ciliolatus forma comatus Fernald is densely ciliolate along the midnerves and represents an extreme of the variation found in the species.

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

Of conservation concern.

Symphyotrichum defoliatum is known from the San Gabriel and San Bernardino mountains, and from the Peninsular Ranges, southern California.

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

Source FNA vol. 20, p. 502. FNA vol. 20, p. 538.
Parent taxa Asteraceae > tribe Astereae > Symphyotrichum > subg. Symphyotrichum > sect. Symphyotrichum Asteraceae > tribe Astereae > Symphyotrichum > subg. Ascendentes
Sibling taxa
S. adnatum, S. anomalum, S. anticostense, S. ascendens, S. boreale, S. bracteolatum, S. campestre, S. chapmanii, S. chilense, S. ciliatum, S. concolor, S. cordifolium, S. cusickii, S. defoliatum, S. depauperatum, S. drummondii, S. dumosum, S. elliottii, S. ericoides, S. eulae, S. falcatum, S. fendleri, S. firmum, S. foliaceum, S. fontinale, S. frondosum, S. georgianum, S. grandiflorum, S. greatae, S. hallii, S. hendersonii, S. jessicae, S. laeve, S. lanceolatum, S. lateriflorum, S. laurentianum, S. lentum, S. molle, S. nahanniense, S. novae-angliae, S. novi-belgii, S. oblongifolium, S. ontarionis, S. oolentangiense, S. parviceps, S. patens, S. phlogifolium, S. pilosum, S. plumosum, S. porteri, S. potosinum, S. praealtum, S. pratense, S. prenanthoides, S. priceae, S. puniceum, S. pygmaeum, S. racemosum, S. retroflexum, S. rhiannon, S. robynsianum, S. sericeum, S. shortii, S. simmondsii, S. spathulatum, S. subspicatum, S. subulatum, S. tenuifolium, S. tradescantii, S. turbinellum, S. undulatum, S. urophyllum, S. walteri, S. welshii, S. yukonense, S. ×amethystinum
S. adnatum, S. anomalum, S. anticostense, S. ascendens, S. boreale, S. bracteolatum, S. campestre, S. chapmanii, S. chilense, S. ciliatum, S. ciliolatum, S. concolor, S. cordifolium, S. cusickii, S. depauperatum, S. drummondii, S. dumosum, S. elliottii, S. ericoides, S. eulae, S. falcatum, S. fendleri, S. firmum, S. foliaceum, S. fontinale, S. frondosum, S. georgianum, S. grandiflorum, S. greatae, S. hallii, S. hendersonii, S. jessicae, S. laeve, S. lanceolatum, S. lateriflorum, S. laurentianum, S. lentum, S. molle, S. nahanniense, S. novae-angliae, S. novi-belgii, S. oblongifolium, S. ontarionis, S. oolentangiense, S. parviceps, S. patens, S. phlogifolium, S. pilosum, S. plumosum, S. porteri, S. potosinum, S. praealtum, S. pratense, S. prenanthoides, S. priceae, S. puniceum, S. pygmaeum, S. racemosum, S. retroflexum, S. rhiannon, S. robynsianum, S. sericeum, S. shortii, S. simmondsii, S. spathulatum, S. subspicatum, S. subulatum, S. tenuifolium, S. tradescantii, S. turbinellum, S. undulatum, S. urophyllum, S. walteri, S. welshii, S. yukonense, S. ×amethystinum
Synonyms Aster ciliolatus, Aster ciliolatus var. comatus, Aster lindleyanus, Aster wilsonii Aster defoliatus, Aster bernardinus, Aster chilensis var. bernardinus
Name authority (Lindley) Á. Löve & D. Löve: Taxon 31: 359. (1982) (Parish) G. L. Nesom: Phytologia 77: 279. (1995)
Web links