Symphyotrichum lanceolatum (Willd.) G.L. Nesom
Panicled aster, Eastern lined aster, tall white aster, lance-leaf aster, narrow-leaf michaelmas daisy, white-panicle aster
Panicled aster is a widespread North American native.
Identification: Plants are Leaves are Flowers are
Plants: 12–59″ (30–150 cm) in height, rarely up to 6½′ (2 m). They consist of a single main stem that branches in the flowering region. The stem may be hairy or hairless.
Leaves: ⅜–3 ⨉ ⅛–¾″ (1–8 cm ⨉ 5–20 mm), with serrated or scalloped edges, oblanceolate or lanceolate. Dead leaves tend to curl a lot.
Flowers: Flowerheads are panicles that may be heavily branched and densely or quite sparsely flowered. Flowers are white to pinkish or pale blue-violet, ⅜–¾″ (1–2 cm) across, with 16-50 rays and usually 20-40 tiny disc florets. Central disks are yellow, aging to purple. The petals (rays) seem less orderly than with many asters.
Fruits: A dry seed with a tuft of dull white to yellowish hairs, distributed by wind.
Habitats: Moist open ground: river banks and shores, forest edges, swamps, meadows, fields, roadsides.
See our aster comparison table here.
Online References:
References:
Clemants, Steven; Gracie, Carol, Wildflowers in the Field and Forest, Oxford University Press, 2006, p. 22
9/27/2013 · Gordon and Kathy’s, Prospect, Maine · ≈ 8 × 5″ (19 × 12 cm) 
ID is uncertain 
That’s a monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus). · 10/4/2008 · Parker River National Wildlife Refuge, Plum Island, Massachusetts ID is uncertain 
9/11/2025 · Waldoboro, Maine · ≈ 11 × 17″ (28 × 43 cm) 
9/16/2025 · Pownalborough Courthouse Trails, Dresden, Maine · ≈ 13 × 11″ (33 × 27 cm) 
9/11/2025 · Waldoboro, Maine · ≈ 10 × 7″ (25 × 17 cm) 
10/12/2013 · Flat Rock Hill Trail, off Skytop Lane, Dunstable, Massachusetts · ≈ 5 × 6″ (13 × 14 cm) 
9/27/2013 · Gordon and Kathy’s, Prospect, Maine · ≈ 8 × 5″ (19 × 13 cm) ID is uncertain 
9/16/2025 · Pownalborough Courthouse Trails, Dresden, Maine · ≈ 11 × 16″ (27 × 41 cm) 
10/12/2013 · Flat Rock Hill Trail, off Skytop Lane, Dunstable, Massachusetts · ≈ 7 × 10″ (16 × 25 cm) 
9/27/2013 · Gordon and Kathy’s, Prospect, Maine · ≈ 5 × 5″ (13 × 12 cm) ID is uncertain 
9/11/2025 · Waldoboro, Maine · ≈ 11 × 15″ (28 × 39 cm) 
9/11/2025 · Waldoboro, Maine · ≈ 11 × 7″ (27 × 18 cm) 
That’s an aster miner bee (Andrena asteris) · 9/11/2025 · Waldoboro, Maine · ≈ 2 × 2½″ (5.6 × 6.1 cm) 
| Kingdom | Plantae | Plants, but not fungi, lichens, or algae (from Stearn's Botanical Latin) |
| 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 | lanceolatum | “Lance-shaped,” for the leaves |
Symphyotrichum lanceolatum description by Thomas H. Kent, not updated.
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