Symphyotrichum phlogifolium |
Symphyotrichum plumosum |
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thin-leaf late purple aster |
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Habit | Perennials, 50–130 cm, cespitose; with short, thick, woody caudices, not rhizomatous. | Perennials, 40–100 cm, cespitose, eglandular; with cormoid, woody caudices. |
Stems | 1, erect to arching, light to dark brown, soft-hairy, hairs ascending- to spreading- stipitate-glandular distally. |
5–10+, erect or arching (light to dark brown), proximally sparsely to moderately finely woolly-pilose (hairs spreading to ascending), more densely so distally. |
Leaves | (dark green) thin, almost membraneous; basal early deciduous, sessile or subpetiolate, blades spatulate to obovate, 80–140 × 20–30 mm, bases cuneate, margins entire to ± serrate, scabrous, apices acute; proximal cauline withering by flowering, sessile, blades panduriform, (20–)30–70(–110) × 10–30(–35) mm, bases auriculate-clasping, margins entire (flat), sparsely villoso-ciliate, apices acute, faces finely sparely villous or scabrous, stipitate-glandular; distal sessile, blades (rugose-veined when fresh) ovate to lanceolate, 75–125(–140) × 15–35(–40) mm, bases strongly cordate-clasping to auriculate-amplexicaul, margins entire (± undulate), apices acute, acuminate to merely mucronate, faces sparsely strigose, moderately so along veins, sparsely to moderately stipitate-glandular. |
(grayish) soft; basal withering by flowering, sessile, blades (1–3-nerved) elliptic-lanceolate, 20–40 × 10–20 mm, bases attenuate, margins usually entire, rarely remotely serrate, piloso-ciliate, apices acute to obtuse, faces silvery piloso-silky; proximal cauline withering by flowering, sessile, blades oblanceolate, 20–30 × 4–8 mm, bases rounded, subclasping, margins entire, scabrous to silky-piloso-ciliate, apices acute to obtuse, cuspidate-mucronate, faces moderately strigillose; distal sessile, blades lanceolate to narrowly ovate, 8–15 × 2.5–5 mm, reduced distally, bases cuneate, margins entire, apices acute, mucronate, faces moderately, finely lanoso-strigose. |
Peduncles | short (less than 4 cm), strigose, stipitate-glandular, bracts linear-lanceolate, ascending-appressed, grading into phyllaries. |
densely hairy, bracts linear, grading into phyllaries. |
Involucres | cylindric, 5.5–7.5(–8) mm. |
campanulate, 7–9 mm. |
Ray florets | 9–17; corollas light to dark reddish purple, laminae 10–18(–20) × 1–3 mm. |
7–12; corollas rose-purple, laminae 6–9 × 1–2 mm. |
Disc florets | 15–35; corollas white with purple lobes, 6–8 mm, lobes triangular, 1–1.5 mm. |
14–20; corollas pink turning purple, 5–6 mm, tubes shorter than narrowly funnelform throats (thinly puberulent), lobes triangular, 0.3–0.5 mm. |
Phyllaries | in 4–6 series, linear-lanceolate, unequal, bases (tan) ± indurate in proximal 1/3–1/2, margins hyaline, erose, distally scabro-ciliolate to ciliolate, green zones covering distal 1/2, apices outer obtuse to acute, inner acuminate, purplish, faces sparsely strigillose, usually moderately to densely stipitate-glandular, rarely sparsely so. |
in 3–4 series, spreading to reflexed, linear, unequal, bases (tan) ± indurate, margins scarious proximally, green distally, green zones foliaceous, apices acute, faces moderately woolly-strigose. |
Heads | in crowded, paniculiform arrays, branches often initially patent then ascending. |
radiate, in narrow, paniculiform (wand-shaped) to sometimes compact, racemiform arrays (1(–3) per branch). |
Cypselae | dark brown to black, obovoid, not compressed, 2.5–4 mm, 7–10-nerved, faces densely strigose along ribs; pappi tan to tawny, sometimes slightly purplish-tinged, 6–8 mm. |
fusiform-obovoid, not compressed, 2–3 mm, 6–8-nerved, faces densely strigose; pappi tan to yellowish tan, (5.5–)6.5–8 mm. |
2n | = 20. |
= 8. |
Symphyotrichum phlogifolium |
Symphyotrichum plumosum |
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Phenology | Flowering Aug–Oct. | Flowering Oct–Nov. |
Habitat | Loamy, sandy, or gravelly soils, rich mesic mixed-hardwood forests (Appalachians), roadsides | Deep, dry to moist, sandy soils, pine flatwoods, pine-scrub oak woods, favored by fires and clearcuts |
Elevation | 0–1100 m (0–3600 ft) | 0–40 m (0–100 ft) |
Distribution |
AL; CT; DC; DE; GA; IN; KY; MA; MD; NC; NY; OH; PA; RI; SC; TN; VA; WV
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FL |
Discussion | Symphyotrichum plumosum is known only from Franklin County. It differs from S. concolor var. concolor in its long-acuminate, recurved to reflexed phyllaries. No intermediates with S. concolor were seen in the field. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
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Source | FNA vol. 20, p. 490. | FNA vol. 20, p. 493. |
Parent taxa | Asteraceae > tribe Astereae > Symphyotrichum > subg. Virgulus | Asteraceae > tribe Astereae > Symphyotrichum > subg. Virgulus |
Sibling taxa | ||
Synonyms | Aster phlogifolius, Aster patens var. phlogifolius, Virgulus patens var. phlogifolius | Aster plumosus, S. concolor var. plumosum |
Name authority | (Muhlenberg ex Willdenow) G. L. Nesom: Phytologia 77: 289. (1995) | (Small) Semple: in J. C. Semple et al., Cult. Native Asters Ontario, 134. (2002) |
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