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alpine leafybract aster, Canby's leafybract aster, Cusick's American aster, Cusick's aster, Henderson's aster, Kootenai aster, leafy aster, leafy or leafy-bract or alpine leafybract aster, leafy-bract aster, Parry's aster

savanna aster

Habit Perennials 10–60 cm, colonial; long-rhizomatous. Perennials, 30–80 cm, cespitose; rhizomes stout.
Stems

1–5+, ascending to erect, glabrous or sparsely puberulent.

1–3+, erect (sometimes brown proximally, strict to straight), glabrous.

Leaves

thin, margins entire or sometimes serrate, apices acute to obtuse, faces usually glabrous, sometimes sparsely hairy;

basal usually persistent, petiolate to subpetiolate, blades broadly elliptic to obovate, 30–200 × 8–25(–30) mm, bases attenuate, margins entire or sometimes serrate, apices acute to obtuse;

proximal cauline sessile or subpetiolate, blades elliptic to obovate, 35–120 × 8–25 mm, bases attenuate or cuneate to rounded, sometimes ± clasping, apices acute;

distal sessile, reduced distally, bases cuneate, apices acute.

green to dark green, firm, ± fleshy, margins entire, ciliate, apices acute, callous, faces sparsely strigillose;

basal persistent or petiole bases marcescent, long-petiolate (to 15 cm; petioles sheathing, margins glabrous), blades linear to linear-lanceolate, 10–30 × 2–7 mm, bases cuneate to subattenuate, margins sparsely denticulate or entire, indurate-translucent;

proximal cauline persistent, sessile or subpetiolate, blades linear, 42–105 × 1–3 mm, bases clasping, margins often revolute;

distal sessile, blades usually linear, sometimes awl-shaped, 50–180 × 5–10 mm, strongly reduced distally, more abruptly so on array branches, bases subclasping to adnate for 1/2+ length, margins often revolute.

Peduncles

sparsely hairy, bracts 0–3, lanceolate.

1–20+ cm, slender, glabrous, bracts 4–22, linear (awl-shaped), grading into phyllaries.

Involucres

campanulate, 6–16(–20) mm.

cylindro-campanulate, 5.5–9 mm.

Ray florets

15–60;

corollas violet to purple, laminae 8–18(–20) × 1–2 mm.

8–23;

corollas purple to blue-lavender, laminae (10–)14–15(–20) × 0.8–2.2 mm.

Disc florets

50–150;

corollas yellow, 4–7 mm, lobes triangular, 0.4–1 mm.

47–57;

corollas pale yellow, 4.7–6.3 mm, throats funnelform to narrowly campanulate, lobes triangular, 0.5–0.7 mm (proximally sparsely pilose).

Phyllaries

in 4–6 series, oblanceolate or oblong (outer) to lanceolate or linear (inner), subequal or unequal (outer exceeding inner), bases outer foliaceous, inner indurate, margins entire, green zones elliptic to lanceolate, apices acute to rounded, faces glabrous or puberulent.

in 4–5(–6) series, oblong-lanceolate (outer) to linear-lanceolate (innermost), bases indurate (at least inner), margins scarious, hyaline, purplish distally, ciliolate, green zones narrowly lanceolate, not evident, apices purplish, acute (outer) to acuminate (inner), sometimes mucronate (inner), faces sparsely villous.

Heads

borne singly or in paniculiform arrays, branches ascending, up to 25 cm.

in open, usually corymbiform, sometimes ± paniculiform arrays, branches ascending, simple, slender, elongate.

Cypselae

brown, cylindric to obovoid, not compressed, 2.5–4 mm, 3–4-nerved, faces hairy;

pappi white to tawny, 5–8 mm.

tan to gray-brown (nerves stramineous), obovoid, compressed, 3.1–4.5 mm, 8–10(–14)-nerved, faces glabrous;

pappi yellowish, 4.4–4.7 mm.

2n

= 14.

Symphyotrichum foliaceum

Symphyotrichum chapmanii

Phenology Flowering Sep–Nov(–Dec).
Habitat Wet savannas, pine flatwoods, bogs, and acid swamps
Elevation 0–30 m (0–100 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
AK; AZ; CA; CO; ID; MT; NM; NV; OR; UT; WA; WY; AB; BC
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
AL; FL
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Varieties 4 (4 in the flora).

Symphyotrichum foliaceum is extremely variable and is widespread in western montane coniferous forests and subalpine meadows.

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

Of conservation concern.

Symphyotrichum chapmanii is known from the Appalachicola Valley, northern Florida and adjacent southeast Alabama (where it is possibly extirpated), and is disjunct to St. Lucie County (Florida).

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

Key
1. Plants 5–30 cm; heads 1–12; phyllaries subequal, narrowly lanceolate
→ 2
1. Plants usually 20–60 cm; heads usually 5–20; outer phyllaries exceeding inner, wider, often foliaceous
→ 3
2. Plants 5–20 cm; heads usually borne singly; phyllaries often purple-tinged; alpine or sub- alpine habitats
var. apricum
2. Plants 10–30 cm; heads usually 1–12; phyllaries green; montane to subalpine habitats.
var. parryi
3. Phyllaries obtuse to rounded; cauline leaves often clasping at base
var. canbyi
3. Phyllaries acute; cauline leaves sometimes rounded at base, not clasping
var. foliaceum
Source FNA vol. 20, p. 532. FNA vol. 20, p. 478.
Parent taxa Asteraceae > tribe Astereae > Symphyotrichum > subg. Symphyotrichum > sect. Occidentales Asteraceae > tribe Astereae > Symphyotrichum > subg. Chapmaniani
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. 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. 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. 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. 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
Subordinate taxa
S. foliaceum var. apricum, S. foliaceum var. canbyi, S. foliaceum var. foliaceum, S. foliaceum var. parryi
Synonyms Aster foliaceus Aster chapmanii, Eurybia chapmanii, Heleastrum chapmanii
Name authority (Lindley ex de Candolle) G. L. Nesom: Phytologia 77: 282. (1995) (Torrey & A. Gray) Semple & Brouillet: in J. C. Semple et al., Cult. Native Asters Ontario, 133. (2002)
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