(Symphyotrichum laeve)
Overview • Description • Distribution • Taxonomy
Smooth blue aster is often cultivated in gardens and landscapes for its aesthetic appeal and ability to attract pollinators. It is a relatively low-maintenance plant that thrives in a variety of soil types and is tolerant of drought once established. It benefits from regular watering during dry spells and may require staking if the stems become tall and floppy. |
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Description |
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Smooth blue aster typically grows to a height of 1 to 3 feet (30 to 90 cm) and forms clumps or mounds of slender stems. The leaves are lance-shaped, smooth-edged, and arranged alternately along the stem. The flowers are usually bluish-purple, but they can also be white or pink. Each flower head has numerous ray florets (petal-like flowers) surrounding a central disk of tiny tubular florets. |
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Distribution |
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Sources |
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6/18/2023 | ||||
Taxonomy |
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Kingdom | Plantae (green algae and land plants) | ||
Subkingdom | Viridiplantae (green plants) | ||
Infrakingdom | Streptophyta (land plants and green algae) | ||
Superdivision | Embryophyta (land plants) | ||
Division | Tracheophyta (vascular plants) | ||
Subdivision | Spermatophytina (seed plants) | ||
Class | Magnoliopsida (flowering plants) | ||
Superorder | Asteranae | ||
Order |
Asterales (sunflowers, bellflowers, fanflowers, and allies) | ||
Family |
Asteraceae (sunflowers, daisies, asters, and allies) | ||
Subfamily | Asteroideae | ||
Supertribe | Asterodae | ||
Tribe | Astereae (asters and allies) | ||
Subtribe | Symphyotrichinae | ||
Genus | Symphyotrichum (American asters) | ||
Subgenus | Symphyotrichum (common American asters) | ||
Section | Symphyotrichum (bushy, eastern, heart-leaved, and old field asters) | ||
Subsection | Heterophylli (heart-leaf panicled asters) | ||
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This and other asters were formerly place in the genus Aster. That genus was problematic, in that it did not include just one common ancestor with all of its lineal descendants and no others – it was not monophyletic. In 1994, the genus Symphyotrichum was resurrected to include most North American asters formerly in the genus Aster. |
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Subordinate Taxa |
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common smooth blue aster (Symphyotrichum laeve var. laeve) delicate Michaelmas-daisy (Symphyotrichum laeve var. concinnum) Geyer’s aster (Symphyotrichum laeve var. geyeri) smooth blue aster (Symphyotrichum laeve var. purpuratum) |
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Synonyms |
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Aster laevis |
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Common Names |
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smooth aster smooth blue aster |
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MinnesotaSeasons.com Sightings |
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Badoura Jack Pine Woodland SNA Blazing Star Prairie Addition Preserve, South Unit Felton Prairie SNA, Bicentennial Unit Felton Prairie SNA, Shrike Unit John Peter Hoffman Spring Brook Valley WMA Margherita Preserve-Audubon Prairie Northern Tallgrass Prairie NWR, Pavia Unit Northern Tallgrass Prairie NWR, Rengstorf Unit Pankratz Memorial Prairie, North Unit |
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