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aster de nouvelle-angleterre, New England American-aster, New England aster, New England or michaelmas daisy

aster ponceau, purple-stem American-aster, purple-stem aster, purplestem or swamp or red-stem aster, swamp aster

Habit Perennials, 30–120 cm, cespitose; with thick, woody, branched caudices, or short, fleshy rhizomes, sometimes with woody cormoid portions. Perennials (7–)100–250(–300) cm, cespitose; thickly short-rhizomatous or with stout, branched caudices, sometimes long-rhizomatous.
Stems

1–5+, erect (stout, light to dark brown, sometimes purplish distally), proximally sparsely to moderately hispiduloso-hirsute or pilose, distally moderately to densely so, stipitate-glandular.

1–5+, erect (straight to distally flexuous, stout 5–11 mm diam., usually reddish purple), usually densely to sparsely hirsute or hispid, glabrescent, often proximally glabrate, sometimes glabrate.

Leaves

(light to dark green) thin, often stiff, margins entire or sometimes with shallow teeth, ciliate;

basal withered or withering by flowering, sessile, blades (3-nerved) usually spatulate, sometimes oblanceolate, 20–60 × 5–15 mm, bases attenuate, apices acute, faces sparsely hirsute;

proximal cauline withering by flowering, sessile, blades oblong or lanceolate, 50–100 × 5–15(–20) mm, bases auriculate-clasping, margins entire, pustulate-scabrous, apices acute, mucronulate, faces stipitate-glandular, abaxial thinly strigose, adaxial hirsute or hispidulous;

distal sessile, blades oblanceolate, 30–80 × 6–15 mm, gradually reduced distally, bases auriculate-clasping, apices acute to obtuse, mucronate to minutely white-spinulose, faces moderately to densely short-soft-hairy, sparsely to moderately stipitate-glandular.

(dark green, not crowded) thin, margins remotely serrate to sometimes entire, scabrous, apices acute or acuminate to subcaudate, mucronate, abaxial faces glabrate, ± densely pilose along midveins, adaxial glabrate to scabrous;

basal withering by flowering, subpetiolate to petiolate (petioles ± winged, bases dilated, sheathing), blades spatulate to oblanceolate or lanceolate, 30–10+ × 3–20+ mm, bases attenuate to cuneate, margins remotely crenate-serrate to denticulate or entire, apices acute or acuminate to rounded;

proximal cauline withering by flowering, petiolate to subpetiolate (petioles widely winged, bases auriculate, clasping), blades lanceolate or oblanceolate to oblong, elliptic or elliptic-oblong, (55–)70–200(–220) × 10–40 mm, usually progressively lengthened to mid, bases ± attenuate to cuneate or auriculate and clasping;

distal sessile, blades oblanceolate or lanceolate to oblong or elliptic-oblong (sometimes nearly panduriform), 8–160 × 1–40 mm, progressively reduced distally, strongly so and linear in arrays, bases ± strongly auriculate, clasping, margins subentire or entire.

Peduncles

dilated distally, 0.3–4 cm, densely short-hairy, stipitate-glandular, bracts 1–4, foliaceous, linear to narrowly lanceolate, densely short-hairy, stipitate-glandular, grading into phyllaries.

0.2–3+ cm, ± hispid or hirsute to villous, bracts 0–3, lanceolate or linear-lanceolate to linear, distal often subtending heads.

Involucres

campanulate to hemispheric, (5–)7–9(–15) mm.

campanulate, (6–)8–12(–15) mm.

Ray florets

(40–)50–75(-100);

corollas dark rose to deep purple (pale pink or white), laminae 9–13 × 0.8–1.3 mm.

20–50(–60);

corollas usually pale to dark blue, lavender or purple, seldom white or pink, laminae (7–)12–18(–21) × (0.9–)1.4–1.8 mm.

Disc florets

50–110;

corollas light yellow becoming purple, (4–)4.5–5.5(–7) mm, tubes ± 1/2 narrowly funnelform throats (glabrous or thinly puberulent), lobes triangular, 0.4–0.7 mm.

30–50 (–90);

corollas yellow or cream becoming pink or purple, (4.1–)5–6.5 mm, tubes shorter than cylindro-funnelform limbs, lobes triangular, 0.4–1.1 mm.

Phyllaries

in 3–5(–6) series (dark green to purple-tinged), linear-lanceolate, subequal, outer foliaceous, mid and inner scarious in basal 1/3–1/2, margins stipitate-glandular, apices long-acuminate to acuminate, spreading to reflexed or squarrose, faces glabrous, outer densely stipitate-glandular.

in 4–6 series, oblanceolate-spatulate to linear, subequal, bases indurate 1/5–1/2, margins not scarious (outer) to narrowly scarious, erose, hyaline, sparsely ciliolate, green zones linear-lanceolate, outer sometimes ± foliaceous, to linear (inner), apices ± spreading at tip when foliaceous, long-acuminate to caudate, mucronate to apiculate, sometimes purplish tinged, faces glabrous or ± hispid.

Heads

in leafy, often crowded, paniculo-corymbiform arrays.

in open, paniculiform (often corymbiform-looking) arrays, branches widely spreading to ascending, sparsely to moderately leafy with ± large leaves.

Cypselae

dull purple or brown, oblong or obconic, not compressed, 1.8–2.5(–3) × 0.6–1 mm, 7–10-nerved, faces densely sericeous, sparsely stipitate-glandular;

pappi tawny (barb tips sometimes rose-tinged), 4.5–6 mm.

purple or brown (nerves stramineous), oblanceoloid, ± falcate, compressed, (2–)2.5–3.5(–4) mm, 3–4-nerved (nerves prominent), faces glabrous or sparsely strigillose;

pappi white, 3.8–6 mm.

2n

= 10.

Symphyotrichum novae-angliae

Symphyotrichum puniceum

Phenology Flowering Aug–Oct(–Nov).
Habitat Open, moist to wet, sandy or loamy, rich soils, fields, prairies, meadows, marshy grounds, shrubby swamps, fens, shores, thickets, moist edges of woods, roadsides, railroad rights-of-way, somewhat weedy
Elevation 0–1600 m (0–5200 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
AL; AR; CO; CT; DC; DE; GA; IA; IL; IN; KS; KY; MA; MD; ME; MI; MN; MO; MS; MT; NC; ND; NE; NH; NJ; NM; NY; OH; OK; OR; PA; RI; SC; SD; TN; UT; VA; WA; WI; WV; WY; MB; NB; NS; ON; QC [Introduced in Europe]
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
AL; CT; DE; GA; IA; IL; IN; LA; MD; ME; MI; MN; MO; MS; NC; ND; NE; NH; NJ; NY; OH; PA; RI; SC; SD; TN; TX; VA; VT; WI; WV; AB; BC; MB; NB; NS; ON; PE; QC; SK
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Symphyotrichum novae-angliae is escaped from cultivation and introduced in Montana, Oregon, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming, and has been reported as an ephemeral escape in British Columbia. It possibly escaped from cultivation elsewhere. The Michaelmas daisy is widely sold in the horticultural trade, where cultivars have been developed. Forms have been described that correspond to color genetic variants within natural populations {Aster novae-angliae forma roseus (Desfontaines) Britton; A. novae-angliae forma geneseensis House}; they are not recognized here.

Symphyotrichum novae-angliae resembles Canadanthus modestus, but the ranges of the two do not overlap, and the latter has sparsely hairy cypselae with dark ribs. Symphyotrichum novae-angliae hybridizes with S. ericoides, forming the F1 intersectional hybrid S. ×amethystinum.

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

Varieties 2 (2 in the flora).

Symphyotrichum puniceum is one of the widest ranging species in the genus, growing from the edges of the prairies to the Atlantic coast, and from the Gulf coast of Texas to southern Ungava Bay (northern Quebec).

Several taxa have been recognized within this variable species. Here, we segregate Symphyotrichum firmum as a distinct entity. The tall, pink-rayed S. elliottii of the outer coastal plains is also distinctive, despite reports of hybrids with S. puniceum var. puniceum where their ranges overlap (see G. L. Nesom 1997b). A recently described member of the complex, S. rhiannon, is an ultramafic endemic from North Carolina. Here, within S. puniceum, we recognize two varieties, the variable and widespread var. puniceum, and var. scabricaule from the inner Gulf coastal plains, following Nesom, who also offered a useful summary of the infraspecific taxonomy of the species.

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

Key
1. Stems sparsely to ± densely hirsute, glabrescent, sometimes glabrate proximally; abaxial leaf faces paler than adaxial, with a dark, distinct reticulum, adaxial without impressed main veins; array leaves usually equal to mid cauline
var. puniceum
1. Stems densely and uniformly hirsute; abaxial and adaxial leaf faces ±concolorous, without dark, distinct reticulum, adaxial with distinctly impressed main veins; array leaves reduced in size relative to mid cauline
var. scabricaule
Source FNA vol. 20, p. 487. FNA vol. 20, p. 524.
Parent taxa Asteraceae > tribe Astereae > Symphyotrichum > subg. Virgulus Asteraceae > tribe Astereae > Symphyotrichum > subg. Symphyotrichum > sect. Symphyotrichum
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. 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. 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. 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. 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. puniceum var. puniceum, S. puniceum var. scabricaule
Synonyms Aster novae-angliae, Virgulus novae-angliae Aster puniceus
Name authority (Linnaeus) G. L. Nesom: Phytologia 77: 287. (1995) (Linnaeus) Á. Löve & D. Löve: Taxon 31: 359. (1982)
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