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creeping aster

southern swamp aster

Habit Plants 10–90 cm; in clones and clumps (sometimes with rosettes), eglandular (except pedicels); rhizomes slender, herbaceous becoming woody, scaly. Plants 20–80 cm; in clumps and clones, eglandular; rhizomes creeping, herbaceous and thin, becoming thick and woody, scaly.
Stems

1–3+, erect, simple, straight, proximally sparsely strigillose to glabrescent, distally strigose or villoso- or hirsuto-strigose.

1–10+, erect, often reddish, simple, straight (brittle), proximally glabrous, glabrescent, or sparsely strigillose, distally strigillose or ± villoso-hirsute (at least in arrays).

Leaves

basal and cauline, firm (only midnerves conspicuous), margins slightly revolute, slightly indurate, entire or sometimes remotely crenulate-serrulate, scabrous, teeth indurate, apices acute to obtuse, indurate, often mucronate, abaxial faces scabrous, adaxial sparsely strigose or glabrous;

basal and proximal cauline usually persistent, sometimes withering by flowering (bases often marcescent), petioles sometimes narrowly winged, bases sheathing, blades narrowly elliptic, narrowly ovate, or lanceolate to spatulate, narrowly obovate, or oblanceolate, 13–135 × (2–)6–35 mm (earliest smaller), bases attenuate to cuneate;

mid short-winged-petiolate or sessile, blades lance-oblong, lance-elliptic, lanceolate, or oblanceolate, 22–105 × 3–14 mm, gradually reduced distally, bases slightly auriculate-clasping to cuneate or attenuate;

distal (arrays) sessile, blades lanceolate to linear, 7–42 × 1–6 mm, abruptly reduced.

basal and cauline, firm, only midnerves evident, margins indurate, entire or sometimes remotely spinulose-serrate, scabrous, spines indurate, ± pronounced, apices mucronate or indurate, abaxial faces glabrous or scabrous, adaxial sparsely hirtellous, distal often more hairy;

basal and proximalmost cauline withering by flowering, petioles (often marcescent, to 20 mm), bases sheathing, blades elliptic to lanceolate (basal) or linear-lanceolate, ± arcuate (proximal), 15–103 × 5–9 mm, bases cuneate, apices obtuse (basal) to acute;

cauline progressively sessile (petioles more winged) and reduced, blades lanceolate or linear-lanceolate to linear, ± arcuate, 18–132+ × 2–6 mm, margins sometimes revolute, apices acute.

Peduncles

densely strigose or strigoso-hispid, sometimes sparsely long-stipitate-glandular distally;

bracts (0–)1–3(–6), leaflike to phyllary-like (bases indurate), scabrous or sparsely strigose.

ascending, usually mostly 1–10+ cm (seldom not elongating, sometimes those of young heads appearing short or absent), thin, hirtello-puberulent to villoso-hirsute;

bracts 2–5, often 1–2 subtending heads, sometimes phyllary-like (bases pale, indurate).

Involucres

cylindro-campanulate, 7–11(–13) mm, shorter than pappi.

campanulate, 9–11 mm, much shorter than pappi.

Ray florets

13–30;

corollas bluish violet, (8–)11.5–15.5 × 1.5–2.3 mm.

15–35;

corollas deep lavender to purple, (10–)15–20 × 1–2.3 mm.

Disc florets

25–40;

corollas pale yellow turning purplish, 5–7.2 mm, slightly ampliate, tubes shorter than funnelform throats, lobes erect, deltate to triangular, 0.75–1.1 mm.

25–60;

corollas yellow, 5.5–7 mm, slightly ampliate, tubes much shorter than cylindro-funnelform throats, lobes spreading, lanceolate-acuminate, 0.75–1.1 mm.

Phyllaries

35–65 in 4–5 series, oblong (outer) to linear-oblong or seldom linear (inner), strongly unequal, membranous, bases indurate, rounded (outer), dark green zones foliaceous, sometimes slightly dilated, in distal 1/3–1/2 (outer) to 1/8–1/7 or none and not reaching margins (inner), margins hyaline or sometimes purplish, narrowly scarious, erose, ciliate (scarious parts), ± scabrous (foliaceous parts), sometimes short-stipitate-glandular (innermost), apices spreading to squarrose, obtuse, often dilated (innermost), mucronulate (outer) or apiculate (inner), abaxial faces glabrous or strigillose, both scabrellous on foliaceous parts.

40–65+ in 4–5 series, lanceolate or oblong (outer) to linear-oblanceolate or linear (inner), unequal, membranous, bases indurate, rounded (particularly outer), green zones well defined, slightly expanded in distal 1/3–2/3 (foliaceous), reaching margins (outer wholly foliaceous, outermost are bracts subtending heads) to 1/6 or less and not reaching margins or none (inner), margins sometimes distally purplish (particularly inner), indurate, narrowly scarious, erose proximally to nearly completely so (inner), densely ciliate proximally (scarious part) to distally scabrous (foliaceous part), apices loose and often spreading, sometimes squarrose, obtuse to sometimes acute, mucronate, faces sparsely to densely strigillose.

Heads

(1–)3–50(–122+), usually in open or dense, corymbiform arrays, seldom borne singly.

(1–)4–10+ in open, corymbiform arrays, seldom borne singly, with ascending branches.

Cypselae

brown, cylindro-obconic, slightly compressed, 3.2–3.5 mm, ribs 8–10, stramineous, strigillose;

pappi of tawny-yellowish to pinkish bristles 5.2–7.1 mm, ± equaling disc corollas.

stramineous to tawny, cylindric to narrowly obovoid, slightly compressed, 2.3–3.6 mm, ribs 10–16, sparsely strigillose;

pappi of stramineous (firm, sometimes apically clavellate) bristles 5–6.7 mm, ± equaling disc corollas.

2n

= 36.

= 36.

Eurybia surculosa

Eurybia paludosa

Phenology Flowering summer–fall. Flowering late summer–fall.
Habitat Dry to wet, especially sandy soils, open, pinelands, oak-scrub, clearings, bogs, roadsides Moist savannas, margins of pools and swamps, low pinelands, seldom on sand hills of coastal plains, open hammocks
Elevation 200–1500 m (700–4900 ft) 0–100 m (0–300 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
AL; CT; DE; GA; KY; MA; MD; NC; OH; SC; TN; VA
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
from FNA
FL; GA; NC; SC
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Eurybia surculosa is of conservation concern in Virginia and Alabama. It is often confused with E. compacta, its close relative from the coastal plains. In states where both are present, it is found only inland in the southern Appalachian Mountains and not on the coastal plains; its larger heads help to differentiate it from E. compacta.

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

Eurybia paludosa is often confused with E. hemispherica, with which it is closely related. It is present on the Atlantic coastal plain from North Carolina to northeastern Florida. The two species are disjunct geographically and ecologically, even when they occur in the same states. In North Carolina, for instance, E. paludosa is coastal while E. hemispherica is found in the mountains. In northern Florida, the former is found only in Nassau County, while the latter is present only in the western panhandle. Their ranges do not overlap.

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

Source FNA vol. 20, p. 377. FNA vol. 20, p. 380.
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. integrifolia, 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. ×herveyi
E. avita, E. chlorolepis, E. compacta, E. conspicua, E. divaricata, E. eryngiifolia, E. furcata, E. hemispherica, E. integrifolia, E. jonesiae, E. macrophylla, E. merita, E. mirabilis, E. radula, E. radulina, E. saxicastelli, E. schreberi, E. sibirica, E. spectabilis, E. spinulosa, E. surculosa, E. ×herveyi
Synonyms Aster surculosus Aster paludosus, Heleastrum paludosum
Name authority (Michaux) G. L. Nesom: Phytologia 77: 262. (1995) (Aiton) G. L. Nesom: Phytologia 77: 261. (1995)
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