The green links below add additional plants to the comparison table. Blue links lead to other Web sites.
enable glossary links

thick-stem aster

arctic aster, arctic wood-aster, subalpine aster

Habit Plants 15–70 cm, usually in clumps, sometimes in large clones, densely long-stipitate-glandular distally; woody, branched, thick, usually short rhizomes or short caudices. Plants (2–)10–50 cm, clonal and clumped, eglandular; rhizomes creeping to ascending, long or short, scaly, woody with age.
Stems

1–3+, straight, stout, glabrous or sparsely hispid proximally, distally ± hispido-villous.

1–3+, usually ascending, sometimes decumbent, purplish, occasionally branched basally, sparsely villosulous, densely so distally.

Leaves

basal and cauline, firm, margins entire, strigoso-ciliate, distal also stipitate-glandular, apices mucronate, faces glabrous or glabrescent to ± densely hispid or strigose (then ± scabrous), particularly on veins, midveins sometimes notably hispido-villous, proximally ± sparsely, distally ± densely stipitate-glandular;

basal and proximal cauline long-petiolate (to 100+ mm), petioles ± broadly winged, bases sheathing or auriculate-clasping, blades ovate-lanceolate to narrowly elliptic or oblanceolate, 33–180+ × 11–50 mm, bases attenuate, apices acute or obtuse to rounded;

mid sessile, blades oblong or oblanceolate to oblong-lanceolate, lanceolate, or lance-ovate, 30–140 × 7–27 mm, gradually reduced distally, bases auriculate-clasping, apices usually acute, rarely obtuse;

distal (arrays) narrowly ovate to lanceolate, 9–50 × 3–20 mm.

cauline (dark green abaxially, paler bluish green adaxially) firm, ± markedly veined, margins entire or serrulate, scabrous to strigoso-ciliate, teeth mucronate, slightly indurate, apices obtuse to acute, mucronate, abaxial faces glabrescent to sparsely villous along veins, adaxial glabrescent or sparsely (proximal) to ± densely (distal) villoso-strigose or strigose;

proximalmost withering by flowering;

proximal narrowly winged-petiolate or sessile, petiole bases sheathing, blades spatulate to obovate or oblanceolate, 10–43 × 2–16 mm, smaller than mid, bases attenuate to cuneate, subclasping (if sessile);

mid sessile, blades lanceolate or oblong-lanceolate to oblanceolate, narrowly obovate, or spatulate, 20–80 × 4–35 mm, gradually reduced distally, bases rounded or subauriculate to widely attenuate or cuneate;

distal (arrays) sessile, lanceolate to lance-ovate or elliptic to oblanceolate, 6–52 × 1–17 mm, rapidly reduced distally, margins often slightly purplish.

Peduncles

± densely long-stipitate-glandular;

bracts 0(–2), densely stipitate-glandular.

villosulous;

bracts 0–3, lanceolate to spatulate, leaflike to distally phyllary-like (bases indurate, margins purplish), mostly foliaceous.

Involucres

campanulate, 8–14 mm, much shorter than pappi.

campanulate, 6–9 mm, shorter than pappi.

Ray florets

8–27;

corollas violet-purple, 10–15 × 1.2–2.2 mm.

(10–)14–32;

corollas purple to violet, 7–12(–15) × 1–1.7 mm.

Disc florets

20–50;

corollas pale yellow turning pinkish or purplish, 6–7.8 mm, slightly ampliate, tubes much shorter than cylindric to narrowly funnelform throats, lobes erect, lanceolate, 0.6–0.8 mm.

30–60;

corollas pale to cream-yellow, lobes pink-tinged, 5–7.6 mm, slightly ampliate, tubes equaling or slightly longer than funnelform throats, lobes erect, triangular, 0.6–1.3 mm.

Phyllaries

25–40 in 3–4 series, inner often purplish, oblong-lanceolate (outer) to linear-lanceolate (inner), ± unequal, membranous, bases pale, indurate, sometimes rounded (outer), distally foliaceous (3/4+ in outer, seldom to base, to 1/5 in inner) and wider than bases, margins narrowly scarious (non-foliaceous parts), purplish (at least inner), ciliate and/or stipitate-glandular (along foliaceous parts), apices squarrose, usually acute, sometimes acuminate, faces densely stipitate-glandular.

30–65 in 4–5 series, often purplish, oblong or lance-oblong (outer) to lance-linear or linear (inner), unequal, membranous, bases indurate, rounded, dark green zones diffusely diamond-shaped to lanceolate in distal 1/3–2/3 (outer, seldom foliaceous) to 1/5 or none (inner), margins ± dark purple, narrowly scarious, erose, densely villoso-ciliate, apices appressed or sometimes loose and ± squarrose, acute to obtuse, often apiculate, faces usually villous, rarely glabrous.

Heads

3–41+ in elongate, racemo-corymbiform arrays, branches ascending.

(1–)5–50, usually in open to compact, corymbiform arrays, rarely borne singly.

Cypselae

greenish stramineous, fusiform-obconic, slightly compressed, 4.2–4.7 mm, ribs 7–10, faces ± densely hirtellous;

pappi of stramineous to tawny bristles 7–8 mm, ± equaling disc corollas.

brownish, fusiform-obconic, slightly compressed, ca. 3.4 mm, ribs 8–10 (pale, strong), strigillose;

pappi of cinnamon to yellowish bristles 5–6 mm, longer than disc corollas.

2n

= 18.

= 36.

Eurybia integrifolia

Eurybia merita

Phenology Flowering summer–early fall. Flowering late summer.
Habitat Drier meadows, open, moist woodlands, in sedge-willow, sagebrush, Douglas fir, and spruce communities Open, mesic or dry, rocky areas and woods, clearings, burnt areas, creek banks (rocky, sandy, or gravelly), mostly at subalpine level in mountains, lower in north, Douglas fir, lodgepole pine or spruce forests, subalpine meadows
Elevation 1600–3200 m (5200–10500 ft) 100–3200 m (300–10500 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
CA; ID; MT; NV; OR; UT; WA; WY
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
CA; ID; MT; OR; SD; UT; WA; WY; BC
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Eurybia integrifolia is found in mountain ranges bordering the Basin and Range Province, from the Sierra Nevada and Cascade ranges in the west to the Rocky Mountains and Colorado Plateau in the east.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Eurybia merita occurs mainly from the Interior Mountains and Plateaus system to the Rocky Mountains, and is disjunct to the Black Hills of South Dakota. It reaches California in Siskyou County; the species has been overlooked in this state (e.g., G. A. Allen 1993) because of misidentification with E. radulina. S. L. Welsh et al. (1987) reported E. sibirica from the Uinta Mountains of Utah (Summit County), which A. Cronquist (1994) attributed to var. merita.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Source FNA vol. 20, p. 368. FNA vol. 20, p. 370.
Parent taxa Asteraceae > tribe Astereae > Eurybia Asteraceae > tribe Astereae > Eurybia
Sibling taxa
E. avita, E. chlorolepis, E. compacta, E. conspicua, E. divaricata, E. eryngiifolia, E. furcata, E. hemispherica, E. jonesiae, E. macrophylla, E. merita, E. mirabilis, E. paludosa, E. radula, E. radulina, E. saxicastelli, E. schreberi, E. sibirica, E. spectabilis, E. spinulosa, E. surculosa, E. ×herveyi
E. avita, E. chlorolepis, E. compacta, E. conspicua, E. divaricata, E. eryngiifolia, E. furcata, E. hemispherica, E. integrifolia, E. jonesiae, E. macrophylla, E. mirabilis, E. paludosa, E. radula, E. radulina, E. saxicastelli, E. schreberi, E. sibirica, E. spectabilis, E. spinulosa, E. surculosa, E. ×herveyi
Synonyms Aster integrifolius, Aster amplexifolius Aster meritus, Aster richardsonii var. meritus, Aster sibiricus var. meritus
Name authority (Nuttall) G. L. Nesom: Phytologia 77: 260. (1995) (A. Nelson) G. L. Nesom: Phytologia 77: 260. (1995)
Web links