Symphyotrichum racemosum
Symphyotrichum patens
small white American-aster, small white or smooth white Oldfield aster, smooth white Oldfield aster
late purple American-aster, late purple aster, late purple or spreading aster
1–3+, erect (straight), glabrous or glabrate.
1–5+, ascending to erect (often stout, light to dark brown), sparsely to densely scabroso-hirsute to cinereo-puberulent, or villous distally.
thin, margins often ± revolute, scabrous, apices mucronate to mucronulate, faces glabrous or abaxial minutely pilosulous, cauline with clusters of smaller leaves in most axils;
basal withering by flowering (new vernal rosettes often present), petiolate (petioles narrowly winged, sheathing, strigoso-ciliate), blades spatulate to oblanceolate, 5–40 × 5–15 mm, bases attenuate or cuneate to rounded, margins crenate-serrate, apices obtuse to acuminate;
proximal cauline withering by flowering, petiolate or subpetiolate (proximalmost) or sessile (petioles winged, sparsely long strigoso-ciliate), blades elliptic or elliptic-lanceolate to lanceolate or linear-lanceolate, 20–70 × 3–20 mm, progressively reduced distally, bases clasping, margins becoming short-ciliate distally;
distal (ascending or spreading) usually sessile, sometimes subpetiolate, blades linear-lanceolate to linear, 5–60+ × 1–8 mm, notably unequal in size, reduced distally, abruptly so on branches, bases cuneate to attenuate, margins serrulate or entire.
(light to dark green) thick and often stiff (margins flat, sometimes undulate), scabrous;
basal early deciduous, subpetiolate (petioles winged, sheathing), blades spatulate to obovate, 30–70 × 10–30 mm, bases cuneate, margins entire to ± serrulate, scabrous, apices acute to rounded, faces scabroso-hirsute;
proximal cauline sessile, blades usually ovate to lanceolate, rarely spatulate, (20–)30–70(–100) × 10–30(–40) mm, reduced distally, bases strongly cordate-clasping to auriculate-amplexicaul (broadened below constriction), apices acute, faces (grayish green) rugulose, hairy (abaxial inconspicuously veined, adaxial reticulately veined, hairier along veins);
distal sessile, blades narrowly to broadly ovate, 15–35 × 4–13 mm, much reduced on branches, bases strongly cordate-clasping to auriculate-amplexicaul, apices usually acute, sometimes obtuse, mucronate to white-spinulose, faces scabrous, sometimes sparsely to moderately stipitate-glandular.
slender, 0.2–3+ cm or subsessile, hairy in lines, bracts 5–15, linear-elliptic to acicular, 1–2 mm, glabrous, grading into phyllaries.
stiffly ascending, slender, 2–10(–15) cm, scabroso-hirsute to cinereo-puberulent, bracts appressed to spreading, linear, 1–5 mm, grading into phyllaries.
cylindric, (2.5–)3.5–4.5(–5.5) mm.
campanulate, 5.5–12 mm.
(12–)16–20;
corollas usually white, rarely pink, laminae 5–8 × 0.5–1.2 mm.
12–24+;
corollas light lavender-violet to mauve, rarely white to pinkish, laminae 10–18(–20) × 1–3 mm.
10–20(–25);
corollas cream or pale yellow becoming pink or red, (2.5–)3–4.5 mm, tubes shorter than narrowly funnelform throats, lobes recurved to erect, lanceolate, 0.5–1 mm.
20–50;
corollas yellow, cream, or white turning purple, (4.5–)5.5–7.5 mm, tubes shorter than narrowly funnelform throats, lobes triangular, 0.5–1 mm (glabrous or lobes thinly puberulent).
in 4–6 series, appressed or outer ± spreading, oblong-lanceolate to linear (innermost) , unequal, bases indurate 1/4–1/2, margins narrowly scarious, hyaline, ciliolate, green zones oblanceolate to linear-oblanceolate, apices acute to acuminate, mucronate, sometimes lightly purple-tinged, faces glabrous.
in 4–7(–8) series, appressed or often slightly recurved-spreading or squarrose, ovate-lanceolate to linear, strongly unequal, bases (tan) ± indurate in proximal 1/3–1/2, margins hyaline, erose, distally scabroso-ciliolate to ciliolate, green zones diamond-shaped, in distal 1/5–1/3, apices (outer) obtuse to acute, appressed to squarrose, (inner) acuminate, often purplish red, faces strigillose or cinereo-puberulent abaxially and near tip adaxially, sometimes moderately stipitate-glandular distally.
in diffuse, ± pyramidal, paniculiform arrays, branches ± lax, spreading horizontally or arching, racemiform, subtended by patent to reflexed branch leaves, often crowded but not (or barely) secund.
in paniculiform arrays, branches divaricate (heads 1–5+ per branch), terminal shoot often not flowering.
gray to tan, obovoid, ± compressed, 1–1.8 mm, 4–5-nerved (faint), faces sparsely strigillose or sericeus;
pappi white, 2.5–3.5 mm.
dull purple or brown, obovoid to oblong-obovoid, not compressed, 2–3.5 mm, 7–10-nerved (faint), faces sericeous or strigillose;
pappi tawny, sometimes rose-tinged, 4.5–6.5 mm.
= 16.
Symphyotrichum racemosum
Symphyotrichum patens
Symphyotrichum racemosum is introduced in Canada. The species is cultivated commercially under the name Aster ericoides cv. ‘Spray’. A. G. Jones (1989) reported hybridization with S. dumosum, S. lateriflorum, S. lanceolatum var. interior, and S. ontarionis. The name Aster vimineus Lamarck has been misapplied to this taxon.
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Varieties 3 (3 in the flora).
(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
1. Involucres turbinate, 8–12 mm; phyllaries in 5–7 series, appressed, obtuse, densely strigillose to canescent, eglandular or sparsely glandular; mostly w of Mississippi River, Interior Uplands of e United States | var. patentissimum |
1. Involucres campanulate, 5.5–7.5 mm; phyllaries in 4–5 series, squarrose, acute to acuminate, sparsely to densely strigillose, sparsely to densely stipitate-glandular | → 2 |
2. Plants slender; involucres 5.5–6.5 mm; mid phyllaries 0.7–1 mm, faces densely strigillose, sparsely stipitate-glandular; Alabama to Texas, n to Kansas | var. gracile |
2. Plants robust; involucres 6–7.5 mm; mid phyllaries 1–1.2 mm, faces densely glandular and sparsely strigillose; mostly e of Mississippi River | var. patens |
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