Spermatophytes (seed plants): Angiosperms (flowering plants): Eudicots: Core Eudicots: Asterids: Campanulids: Asterales
WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/14/23):
Symphyotrichum prenanthoides
FAMILY
Asteraceae
Go to FSUS key
Dig deeper at SERNEC, a consortium of southeastern herbaria.
Test-drive A Teaching Key to Asters.
Read more about Crooked-stem Aster at Vascular Plants of North Carolina.
SYNONYMOUS WITH
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Symphyotrichum prenanthoides
FAMILY
Asteraceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH Floristic Synthesis of North America. BONAP (Kartesz, 2021)
Symphyotrichum prenanthoides
SYNONYMOUS WITH Flora of North America north of Mexico, vol. 19-20-21 (2006)
Symphyotrichum prenanthoides
SYNONYMOUS WITH Floristic Synthesis of North America (Kartesz, 1999)
Symphyotrichum prenanthoides
SYNONYMOUS WITH VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 179-47-022:
Aster prenanthoides FAMILY Asteraceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)
Aster prenanthoides
COMMON NAME:
Zigzag Aster, Crooked-stem Aster
To see larger pictures, click or hover over the thumbnails.
)
USDA-NRCS PLANTS Database / Britton, N.L., and A. Brown. 1913 pnd_aspr4_001_lvd
)
JK Marlow jkm121006_305
October Washington County VA
Virginia Creeper Trail
)
JK Marlow jkm121006_309
October Washington County VA
Virginia Creeper Trail
Leaves taper to a long winged petiole-like base w clasping auricular lobes, per Wildflowers of the Southern Mountains (Smith, 1998).
)
JK Marlow jkm121006_314
October Washington County VA
Virginia Creeper Trail
)
JK Marlow jkm121006_315
October Washington County VA
Virginia Creeper Trail
Stem zigzags, per Newcomb's Wildflower Guide (Newcomb, 1977).
)
JK Marlow jkm121006_327
October Washington County VA
Virginia Creeper Trail
Disc florets cream-colored or light yellow becoming purple or brown, per Flora of North America.
)
JK Marlow jkm121006_328
October Washington County VA
Virginia Creeper Trail
The 1" heads have 20-35 blue or lavender rays, per Wildflowers of the Southern Mountains (Smith, 1998).
)
JK Marlow jkm121006_328329
October Washington County VA
Virginia Creeper Trail
Long-pointed ovate-lanceolate sharply toothed blades taper below the middle, per Wildflowers of the Southern Mountains (Smith, 1998).
WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (4/14/23):
Symphyotrichum prenanthoides
FAMILY
Asteraceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Symphyotrichum prenanthoides
FAMILY
Asteraceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
Floristic Synthesis of North America. BONAP (Kartesz, 2021)
Symphyotrichum prenanthoides
SYNONYMOUS WITH
Flora of North America north of Mexico, vol. 19-20-21
Symphyotrichum prenanthoides
SYNONYMOUS WITH
Floristic Synthesis of North America (Kartesz, 1999)
Symphyotrichum prenanthoides
SYNONYMOUS WITH
VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 179-47-022:
Aster prenanthoides
FAMILY
Asteraceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)
Aster prenanthoides
165
Forb
Perennial
Habitat: Moist or wet forests, roadbanks, fields, per Weakley's Flora
Native to North Carolina & Georgia
Common in NC Mountains, rare in GA
CLICK HERE to see a map, notes, and images from Weakley's Flora of the Southeastern US.
LEAVES:
Simple
Alternate (basal leaves absent or withered at flowering)
FLOWER:
Summer/Fall
Rays: Blue/ Violet
(rarely white)
Disc: Cream or yellow becoming purple or brown
Inferior ovary
Disc flowers bisexual & fertile/ Ray flowers pistillate & fertile
Flower heads in broad, ± flat, corymb-panicle-like arrays, branches spreading to ascending
FRUIT:
Summer/Fall
Achene
TO LEARN MORE about this plant, look it up in a good book!
- Newcomb's Wildflower Guide (Newcomb, 1977) p456
- Wildflowers of the Atlantic Southeast (Cotterman, Waitt, & Weakley, 2019) p439
- Wildflowers of the Eastern United States (Duncan & Duncan, 1999) p113
- Wildflowers of the Southern Mountains (Smith, 1998) p210
If a search such as "Carex leptalea var. leptalea" doesn't deliver the results you want, try "Carex leptalea".
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