A Comparative Study of Cultivated Asters Richard G
Plant Evaluation Notes ISSUE 36, 2013 A Comparative Study of Cultivated Asters Richard G. Hawke, Plant Evaluation Manager Jessie Vining Stevens Symphyotrichum oblongifolium ‘Raydon’s Favorite’ utumn is the time of asters. In days one of the largest and most evolutionarily sion, white. The ray florets surround the clus- suffused with the brilliant tones of specialized of plant families. The familial re- ter of disk florets; the number of rays varies senescing leaves, asters finally show semblance is evident among aster relatives from a few to hundreds in some double-flow- their true colors in gardens, both cultivated such as dahlias (Dahlia spp.), coneflowers ered cultivars. Each ray floret has one long, and natural, along roadsides, and in native (Echinacea spp.), sunflowers (Helianthus narrow ligule that is distinctly petallike in ap- places. Like clockwork, their starry flowers in spp.), Shasta daisies (Leucanthemum spp.), pearance, and acts much like the petal of a rich hues of blue, purple, pink, or white burst and zinnias (Zinnia spp.). Recently, changes in typical flower to attract pollinators to the forth to mark the change of seasons. A ubiq- the generic names of North American species plant. Ray florets come in varying shades of uitous nature often saddles asters with the from Aster to less melodious names such as pink, red, lavender, blue, violet, purple, and reputation of looking too wild, but their natu- Doellingeria, Eurybia, and Symphyotrichum white; the rays rather than the disks describe ral beauty and garden merit cannot be over- have complicated matters for gardeners. The the overall flower color. Another attribute of looked.
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