Symphyotrichum pygmaeum |
Symphyotrichum campestre |
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pygmy aster |
meadow aster, western meadow aster |
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Habit | Perennials 1.5–15 cm, cespitose; with short, branched caudices, long-rhizomatous (both wiry). | Perennials, 10–40 cm, colonial or cespitose; long-rhizomatous. |
Stems | 1–10+, decumbent to ascending (purple), sparsely or densely villous to woolly distally. |
1–5+, ascending to erect (light to dark brown), proximally glabrous, distally strigose, stipitate-glandular. |
Leaves | firm, margins usually entire, sometimes remotely pauci-serrulate, sparsely villoso-ciliate, apices obtuse to acute, sometimes mucronate; basal often withering by flowering, petiolate (petioles widely winged, sheathing), blades spatulate, 5–19 × 2–4 mm, bases attenuate, apices rounded, faces glabrous or sparsely villous proximally; proximal sessile, blades lanceolate to oblong-lanceolate or (sometimes) -spatulate, 30–50 × 3–10 mm, bases ± clasping, apices obtuse to acute, faces glabrous or sparsely villous; distal sessile, blades lanceolate to oblong, 13–19 × 2–4.5 mm, bases clasping to cuneate, apices acute to obtuse, faces sparsely woolly, sometimes sparsely stipitate-glandular. |
(light green) firm, margins entire, scabrous; basal sometimes persistent, sessile, blades (1–3-nerved) linear-oblanceolate, 10–30 × 4–10 mm, bases attenuate, apices obtuse, mucronate, faces glabrate to sparsely scabrous; proximal cauline withering by flowering, sessile, blades (3-nerved) narrowly oblanceolate, 20–80 × 2–8 mm, bases cuneate, apices obtuse to acute, mucronulate or white-spinulose, faces glabrous or moderately short-strigose, stipitate-glandular; distal sessile, blades linear-oblanceolate to -lanceolate or oblong (distally), 20–50 × 2–5 mm, ± reduced distally, bases ± clasping to cuneate, apices acute, mucronulate, faces glabrous or moderately short-strigose, stipitate-glandular. |
Peduncles | densely villous to lanate distally, bracts 0. |
sparsely to moderately short-strigose, moderately stipitate-glandular, bracts ± ascending, linear to narrowly-lanceolate. |
Involucres | hemispherico-campanulate, 9–12.5 mm. |
campanulate to cylindro-campanulate, 5.5–8 mm. |
Ray florets | 16–28; corollas purple to violet, laminae 12–18 × 2–3.2 mm. |
15–31; corollas violet, laminae (5–)6–15 × 1–2 mm. |
Disc florets | 53–55; corollas yellow, 5.6–6.5 mm, throats funnelform, lobes triangular, 0.5–0.8 mm (red or white clavate-hairy). |
25–40; corollas yellow, 4.5–6 mm, lobes triangular, 0.4–0.8 mm. |
Phyllaries | in 3–4 series (dark purple), lance-oblong or oblong (outer) to linear-lanceolate or sometimes linear (inner), subequal, outer ± herbaceous, bases not indurate, margins herbaceous (outer) to narrowly scarious and erose proximally (inner), strongly purple, villoso-ciliate in green portion, green zones (inner) 1/2–2/3 of distal portions, apices acute to acuminate, inner sometimes apiculate, appressed to loose and squarrose (particularly outer), faces woolly to densely villous, sparsely to moderately stipitate-glandular. |
in 3–4 series, linear to lanceolate, subequal to unequal, bases ± indurate, margins scarious, green zones covering distal portion, apices acute to acuminate, outer ± foliaceous, spreading to reflexed, faces glabrate, sparsely to densely stipitate-glandular. |
Heads | borne singly. |
1–10(–30), borne singly or in paniculiform arrays, branches ascending. |
Cypselae | fusiform to cylindro-obconic, ± compressed, [size unknown], 4–7-nerved (faint), faces ± densely strigillose; pappi whitish to yellowish, 5–7.2 mm. |
light brown, sometimes translucent reddish brown between ribs, narrowly obovoid, ± compressed, 2–2.5 mm, 3–4-nerved (faint), moderately strigose on ribs; pappi tawny, 3.8–6 mm. |
2n | = 10. |
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Symphyotrichum pygmaeum |
Symphyotrichum campestre |
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Phenology | Flowering summer. | Flowering Aug–Oct. |
Habitat | Open, active, moist sand dunes, sandy or silty stream banks and terraces, usually cyclically disturbed gravelly tundra and tundra slopes | Open, often dry, disturbed, rocky and sandy soils near ponds and streams, dry grass meadows, open pine-douglas fir forests, plains to montane zones |
Elevation | 0–200+ m (0–700+ ft) | 1500–2500 m (4900–8200 ft) |
Distribution |
AK; NT; NU |
CA; CO; ID; MT; NV; OR; WA; WY; AB; BC
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Discussion | Of conservation concern. Symphyotrichum pygmaeum has long been included within or associated with Eurybia sibirica. Though similar in appearance, the two species can be distinguished by the glands present on S. pygmaeum on the distal leaves and phyllaries. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Two poorly defined varieties of Symphyotrichum campestre have been described. Variety campestre has glabrous or sparsely strigose leaves and occurs in southern British Columbia, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, Washington, and Wyoming. Bloomer’s Aster, var. bloomeri, has moderately strigose leaves and occurs in California, Nevada, and Oregon. The varieties are not sufficiently distinct to warrant recognition. Symphyotrichum ×columbianum (Piper) G. L. Nesom (syn. Aster columbianus Piper, A. multiflorus Aiton var. columbianus (Piper) S. F. Blake, Virgulus ×columbianus (Piper) Reveal & Keener) is the hybrid between S. campestre and S. ericoides subsp. pansum. (Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.) |
Source | FNA vol. 20, p. 485. | FNA vol. 20, p. 484. |
Parent taxa | ||
Sibling taxa | ||
Synonyms | Aster pygmaeus, Aster sibiricus subsp. pygmaeus, Aster sibiricus var. pygmaeus, Eurybia pygmaea | Aster campestris, Aster bloomeri, Aster campestris var. bloomeri, S. campestre var. bloomeri, Virgulus campestris |
Name authority | (Lindley) Brouillet & S. Selliah: Sida 21: 1635. (2005) | (Nuttall) G. L. Nesom: Phytologia 77: 276. (1995) |
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