Symphyotrichum puniceum (L.) Á. Löve & D. Löve
Purple-stemmed aster, red-stem aster, swamp aster
Kingdom Plantae Plants, but not fungi, lichens, or algae
Subkingdom Tracheobionta Vascular plants—plants with a “circulatory system” for delivering water and nutrients
Division Magnoliophyta Flowering plants, also known as angiosperms
Class Magnoliopsida Dicotyledons—plants with two initial seed leaves
Subclass Asteridae A large class that encompasses asters
Order Asterales Flowering plants with a central disk flower and surrounding petals, like daisies
Family Asteraceae The aster family, which also includes daisies and sunflowers; from the Greek ἀστήρ, “star,” for the star-shaped flowers
Genus Symphyotrichum From Greek symphysis, “borne together or growing together, coalescing,” and trichinos, “hair, a single hair”
Species puniceum “Reddish purple”
About plant names...
Purple-stemmed aster is native to North America, found in marshy habitats.
Identification: Although these asters are named for their purple
stems, they aren't always purple, especially on younger plants. Stems are hairy and rough to the touch.
Plants are 3-8′ (1-2.5 m) tall, rarely up to 9½′ (3 m), with stout stems up to ⅜″ (1.1 cm)
around.
Leaves are oblanceolate , with small teeth that are usually widely spaced and may not be present,
and bases that clasp the stems. They are up to 6″ (15 cm) long and 2½″ (7.0 cm) wide,
with an easily visible central vein.
Flowerheads are openly
branched panicles . Individual flowers are ⅞-1½″ (2.5-3.8 cm) across, and pale to dark blue-purple,
sometimes almost white, with 20-50 rays. Central discs are yellow or cream-colored, with 30-50 tiny florets
(as many as 90), aging to pink or purple. They
appear August through November.
See our aster comparison table here.
Or check Arieh Tel's well-researched and informative
aster comparison site .
Online References:
The Plants of the Eloise Butler Wildflower Garden
Minnesota Wildflowers
Wikipedia
The Connecticut Botanical Society's Connecticut wildflowers site
The Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
The Missouri Botanical Garden
EFloras
References:
Clemants, Steven; Gracie, Carol, Wildflowers in the Field and Forest , Oxford University Press, 2006 , p. 20
Newcomb, Lawrence, Morrison, Gordon (Illus.), Newcomb’s Wildflower Guide , Little, Brown and Company, 1977 , p. 456
Peterson, Roger Tory, McKenny, Margaret, Peterson Field Guides: Wildflowers—Northeastern and North Central North America , Houghton Mifflin, 1968 , p. 356
8/25/2013 · Casalis State Forest, Elm Hill Rd, Peterborough, New Hampshire · ≈ 4½ × 7″ (12 × 18 cm) ID is uncertain
8/22/2012 · Squannacook River Wildlife Area, Townsend, Massachusetts · ≈ 11 × 7″ (27 × 18 cm) ID is uncertain
8/25/2013 · Casalis State Forest, Elm Hill Rd, Peterborough, New Hampshire · ≈ 7 × 4½″ (16 × 11 cm) ID is uncertain
8/25/2013 · Casalis State Forest, Elm Hill Rd, Peterborough, New Hampshire · ≈ 9 × 6″ (23 × 16 cm) ID is uncertain
Symphyotrichum puniceum description by Thomas H. Kent, last updated 11 Oct 2021.
© FloraFinder.org. All rights reserved.
8/22/2012 · Squannacook River Wildlife Area, Townsend, Massachusetts · ≈ 9 × 6″ (23 × 15 cm) ID is uncertain
8/25/2013 · Casalis State Forest, Elm Hill Rd, Peterborough, New Hampshire · ≈ 9 × 6″ (22 × 15 cm) ID is uncertain
8/22/2012 · Squannacook River Wildlife Area, Townsend, Massachusetts · ≈ 8 × 5″ (19 × 13 cm) ID is uncertain
8/17/2014 · Bald Mountain, Franconia Notch Area, White Mountains, New Hampshire · ≈ 6 × 9″ (16 × 23 cm)
8/22/2012 · Squannacook River Wildlife Area, Townsend, Massachusetts · ≈ 7 × 4½″ (17 × 11 cm) ID is uncertain
8/25/2013 · Casalis State Forest, Elm Hill Rd, Peterborough, New Hampshire · ≈ 7 × 4½″ (16 × 11 cm) ID is uncertain
Range: Zones 2-9:
About this map...
Home   
Species