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eastern silver American-aster, eastern silver aster, eastern silvery aster

Georgia aster

Habit Perennials, 30–80 cm, cespitose; with cormoid, woody caudices. Perennials, 50–100 cm, colonial; rhizomatous, woody.
Stems

1–10+, ascending to erect (light to dark brown), glabrous or densely canescent distally.

1–5+, erect, straight (± stout, light to dark brown), proximally sparsely to moderately short-strigose, distally densely so, stipitate-glandular.

Leaves

(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).

(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

densely hairy, bracts becoming linear, grading into phyllaries.

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 to narrowly campanulate, 5–7 mm.

campanulate to hemispheric, 8–10 mm.

Ray florets

8–12;

corollas rose-purple, rarely white, laminae 4–9 × 1–1.5 mm.

12–24;

corollas lavender violet to dark reddish purple, laminae 14–24 × 1.5–3.5 mm.

Disc florets

(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.

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, 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.

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 narrow, paniculiform (virgate) arrays (1–3(–5) per branch).

in narrow, racemiform to ± broad, paniculiform arrays, sometimes borne singly on branches, branches initially patent then ascending, leafy.

Cypselae

obovoid, not compressed, 2.5–3.5 mm, 7–10-nerved, faces densely strigose;

pappi tan, (3.5–)4–6 mm.

gray-brown, narrowly obovoid, compressed, 2.5–4 mm, 7–10-nerved, faces sparsely strigose;

pappi tan to tawny, 9–11 mm.

2n

= 50.

Symphyotrichum concolor

Symphyotrichum georgianum

Phenology Flowering Oct–Nov.
Habitat Sandy and clay soils, oak-pine woodlands, road embankments (mostly Piedmont)
Elevation 0–300 m (0–1000 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
AL; DE; FL; GA; KY; LA; MA; MD; MS; NC; NJ; NY; RI; SC; TN; VA
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
AL; FL; GA; NC; SC
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Varieties 2 (2 in the flora).

(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.)

Key
1. Distal cauline leaves and phyllaries moderately to densely silky; e United States
var. concolor
1. Distal cauline leaves and phyllaries glabrous or sparsely hispido-pilose; panhandle Florida
var. devestitum
Source FNA vol. 20, p. 492. FNA vol. 20, p. 490.
Parent taxa Asteraceae > tribe Astereae > Symphyotrichum > subg. Virgulus Asteraceae > tribe Astereae > Symphyotrichum > subg. Virgulus
Sibling taxa
S. adnatum, S. anomalum, S. anticostense, S. ascendens, S. boreale, S. bracteolatum, S. campestre, S. chapmanii, S. chilense, S. ciliatum, S. ciliolatum, 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. 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. 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
Subordinate taxa
S. concolor var. concolor, S. concolor var. devestitum
Synonyms Aster concolor, Lasallea concolor, Virgulus concolor Aster georgianus, Aster patens var. georgianus, Virgulus georgianus, Virgulus patens var. georgianus
Name authority (Linnaeus) G. L. Nesom: Phytologia 77: 278. (1995) (Alexander) G. L. Nesom: Phytologia 77: 282. (1995)
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