Symphyotrichum falcatum
Symphyotrichum anticostense
Lindley's aster, little gray aster, little grey aster, western heath or white prairie aster, white prairie aster
Anticosti American-aster, Anticosti aster, Anticosti Island aster, aster d'Anticosti
1–5+, ascending to erect (grayish brown to brown), moderately to densely hairy.
1, erect (straight, often reddish), glabrous.
(light grayish green) firm, margins entire, strigose, apices ± spine-tipped;
basal withering by flowering, sessile, blades oblanceolate, 10–40 × 3–10 mm, bases attenuate, margins usually entire, rarely remotely serrate, scabrous, apices acute to obtuse, rounded to mucronulate-spinose, faces glabrate to moderately strigose;
proximal cauline sessile, blades linear oblanceolate to oblong, 10–40(–60) × 1.5–4(–7) mm, reduced distally, bases cuneate, margins entire, coarsely ciliate, apices acute or obtuse, faces sparsely to densely appressed hispido-strigose;
distal sessile, blades linear-oblong to linear-lanceolate, 25–45 × 2–3 mm, bases cuneate, margins entire, apices acute, faces moderately to densely strigose.
coriaceous, margins remotely serrulate or entire, slightly revolute, scabrous, apices mucronulate, faces glabrous;
basal withering by flowering, long-petiolate (petioles narrowly winged, bases sheathing), blades lanceolate to oblanceolate, ca. 55+ × 3+ mm, bases slightly attenuate, apices acute;
proximal cauline mostly withering by flowering, petiolate (petioles narrowly winged, sheathing), blades lanceolate or oblanceolate to linear-lanceolate or -oblanceolate, arcuate, 90–160 × 5–18 mm, bases cuneate to slightly attenuate, margins entire or serrulate, apices acute;
distal sessile, blades linear to linear-lanceolate, 8–50 × 1.5–5 mm, progressively reduced distally, more strongly so in arrays, bases cuneate to rounded, sometimes slightly clasping, apices acute to acuminate.
0.2–4 cm, densely hairy, bracts 1–3+, linear to lanceolate, densely hairy.
0.8–5.7 cm, slender, sparsely ot moderately pilosulous, bracts 3–5, linear-lanceolate, often crowded proximal to and surpassing heads.
campanulate, (4.5–)5–8 mm.
campanulate, 6–10 mm.
(15–)20–35;
corollas usually white, sometimes blue or pink, laminae (8–)18–30 × 1.1–1.4 mm.
25–44;
corollas usually pale purple or lilac, sometimes white, laminae 9.5–20 × 0.7–1.4 mm.
(8–)18–30;
corollas yellow becoming brown, 2–2.5 mm, lobes triangular, 0.7–1.2 mm, glabrous.
29–52;
corollas yellow becoming reddish purple, 5–6 mm, tubes slightly shorter than funnelform throats, lobes lanceolate, 0.6–0.7 mm.
in 3–4 series, outer oblanceolate to spatulate (1.5–2 mm), inner linear-lanceolate (3–4 mm), unequal, bases (whitish to tan) ± indurate in basal 1/2–3/4, margins hyaline, scabrous proximally, green zones diamond-shaped, in distal 1/4–1/2, apices (outer) acute to obtuse, clear spine-tipped, spreading to reflexed, (inner) acuminate to attenuate, faces sparsely to moderately hispid-strigose.
in 2–3 series, oblong-oblanceolate or -spatulate (outer) or oblong-lanceolate to linear-lanceolate or linear (inner), ± unequal, bases indurate 1/3–3/4, margins hyaline, scarious, erose distally, sparsely ciliolate distally, green zones lanceolate, outer often foliaceous distally, apices acute to long-acuminate, ± spreading, faces glabrous.
[(1–)10–200+] in racemiform to diffuse-paniculiform arrays (1–10+ per branch, usually not crowded).
in elongate, loosely racemiform arrays, branches ascending, heads single at ends of primary branches or long pedicels.
dark brown, obovoid, not compressed, 2–2.5 mm, faint-nerved, faces densely strigose;
pappi whitish, 4.5–6 mm.
reddish tan, obovoid, compressed, 1.5–2.8 mm, 4–5-nerved, faces strigillose;
pappi yellowish, 7–8 mm.
= 80.
Symphyotrichum falcatum
Symphyotrichum anticostense
Varieties 2 (2 in the flora).
Symphyotrichum falcatum is introduced in Ontario and Illinois. It may closely resemble S. ericoides, which has smaller heads with fewer florets in denser arrays. The two can be difficult to distinguish on the Great Plains. A. G. Jones (1978) recognized two subspecies of S. falcatum, one with two varieties. Those two subspecies are treated as varieties here.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Of conservation concern.
Symphyotrichum anticostense is known from disjunct areas: western Lake St. John, southern Anticosti Island, southern streams of the Gaspé Peninsula (Quebec), Restigouche River (Quebec–New Brunswick), and St. John (New Brunswick) and Aroostook (Maine; A. Haines 2000) rivers. It is an allopolyploid derivative of the cross between the calcareous fen species S. boreale and the widespread shore species S. novi-belgii (J. Labrecque and L. Brouillet 1990). It hybridizes with S. novi-belgii.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
1. Plants cespitose, 1–5(–10)-stemmed, usually sparsely appressed-strigose, with cormoid caudices; new shoots developing near the bases of old stems; peduncles long, slender, bracts 1–5; phyllaries subequal (outer longest and foliaceous), apices not strongly squarrose | var. falcatum |
1. Plants colonial, usually densely hairy, rhizomes entangled, usually 1-stemmed, sometimes clumped; new shoots developing at ends of elongated rhizomes; peduncles stout, bracts 2–10+; phyllaries ± unequal, apices strongly squarrose | var. commutatum |
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