Symphyotrichum kentuckiense | |
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S. kentuckiense in Hamilton County, Tennessee | |
Scientific classification ![]() | |
Kingdom: | Plantae |
Clade: | Tracheophytes |
Clade: | Angiosperms |
Clade: | Eudicots |
Clade: | Asterids |
Order: | Asterales |
Family: | Asteraceae |
Genus: | Symphyotrichum |
Species: | S. kentuckiense |
Binomial name | |
Symphyotrichum kentuckiense | |
Synonyms [2] | |
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Symphyotrichum kentuckiense (formerly Aster kentuckiensis) is a rare species of flowering plant in the Asteraceae family and is commonly known as Kentucky aster, Price's aster, Miss Price's aster, Sadie's aster, or lavender oldfield aster. It is a perennial, herbaceous plant that is endemic to broken limestone cedar glades and roadsides in Alabama, Georgia, Kentucky, and Tennessee. It blooms from August through October, reaches heights between 30 centimeters (1 foot) and 100 cm (3.3 ft), and has green to reddish-brown stems. It is a nearly hairless plant with blue to blue-violet ray florets.
Symphyotrichum priceae was once considered the name of the plant, with S. kentuckiense and Aster kentuckiensis placed as its taxonomic synonyms. In 2021, botanist Max E. Medley proposed that this treatment was incorrect. As of October 2022 [update] , what was originally described as Aster priceae was accepted to be the hybrid between S. kentuckiense and Symphyotrichum pilosum var. pilosum and has been named Symphyotrichum × priceae. [3] The hybrid is a somewhat hairy plant rather than a hairless one, and its characteristics are intermediate between its parents.
NatureServe considers S. kentuckiense [lower-alpha 1] Apparently Secure (G4) globally and Imperiled (S2) in Kentucky where the holotype was collected near Bowling Green in October 1898 by botanist Sadie F. Price. Aster kentuckiensis was then formally described by botanist Nathaniel Lord Britton in 1901.
Symphyotrichum kentuckiense is a rare [4] perennial, herbaceous plant [5] endemic [4] to areas of Alabama, Georgia, Kentucky, and Tennessee in the southeastern United States. [6] It flowers from August through October, growing to heights between 30 centimeters (1 foot) and 100 cm (3.3 ft) from a cespitose rootstock. The rootstock has short, branched underground caudices and no rhizomes. [5]
S. kentuckiense has from one to three or more glabrous (hairless) stems extending from the root base. These stems can be decumbent, growing horizontally along the ground and turned up at the ends, [lower-alpha 2] to ascending. They are green to reddish-brown. [5]
The species has thin alternate [7] leaves that are dark green to bluish-green [5] with glabrous faces. [8] Leaves occur at the base, on stems, and on inflorescence branches. Depending upon the locations of the leaves on the plant, the apices, or tips, can be noticeably pointed (acute [lower-alpha 3] to acuminate [lower-alpha 4] ), obtuse, [lower-alpha 5] mucronate, [lower-alpha 6] or cuspidate. [lower-alpha 7] [5]
Basal leaves are either without leafstalks (called petioles ), making them sessile, or they have very short petioles with sheathing wings that are fringed with hairs on their edges, making them ciliate. The basal leaves are oblanceolate [lower-alpha 8] to obovate [lower-alpha 9] with obtuse [lower-alpha 5] apices, and their bases are cuneate [lower-alpha 10] (wedge-shaped) to attenuate. [lower-alpha 11] Their margins (edges) are entire, meaning they are smooth with no teeth or lobes. Rarely, they can be sparsely saw-toothed, also called serrate . Basal leaves range in lengths from 10 to 70 millimeters (0.4 to 2.8 inches) and widths from 3 to 5 mm (0.12 to 0.20 in). The basal leaves grow in a rosette that develops prior to flowering. These leaves wither or die during plant growth, and at the time of flowering, another rosette of basal leaves forms. [5]
Lower and middle stem leaves are sessile or may have petioles with narrow wings. They usually wither by the time the plant flowers. The leaves are oblanceolate [lower-alpha 8] to linear-oblanceolate and range in lengths of 70 to 105 mm (2.8 to 4.1 in) and widths of 2 to 4 mm (0.08 to 0.16 in). They have attenuate [lower-alpha 11] to cuneate [lower-alpha 10] bases that can be auriculate [lower-alpha 12] (shaped like earlobes) or clasp the stem. [5]
The linear-lanceolate [lower-alpha 13] [lower-alpha 14] to narrowly subulate [lower-alpha 15] distal [lower-alpha 16] leaves are sessile and get progressively smaller as they approach the flower heads. Distal leaf bases are subauriculate [lower-alpha 12] (somewhat earlobe-shaped) and can clasp the stem. Their margins are entire but have cilia closer to the branches. These leaves are glabrous on both sides and range in lengths of 5 to 65 mm (0.2 to 2.6 in) and widths of 1 to 4 mm (0.04 to 0.16 in). The small, 3-nerved inflorescence leaves are often formed in clusters called fascicles . [5]
Symphyotrichum kentuckiense is a late-summer and fall blooming perennial, [5] with flower heads that are about 25 mm (1 in) wide [8] and have blue, [9] blue-violet, [5] pink, or purple ray florets [8] opening August through October. The flower heads grow in leafy paniculiform to racemiform arrays on inflorescences that are straight and ascending or can have wide angles between the branches. Divaricate branching [5] can cause the plant to appear as a small shrub. [10] At times, the flower heads can be secund, appearing on one side of the branch. [5]
Each flower head is on a glabrous peduncle that ranges from 4 to 20 mm (0.16 to 0.79 in) in length. There are 3 to 6 linear to subulate [lower-alpha 15] and stiff, glabrous bracts on each peduncle. Bracts closest to the heads can be so long that their lengths exceed the heights of the involucres. [5]
On the outsides of the flower heads of all members of the family Asteraceae are small bracts that look like scales. These are called phyllaries , and together they form the involucre that protects the individual flowers in the head before they open. [lower-alpha 17] [11] The involucres of Symphyotrichum kentuckiense are cylindric in shape and usually 5.5 to 7.1 mm (0.22 to 0.28 in) in length, although they can be as short as 4.5 mm (0.18 in) and as long as 8.5 mm (0.33 in). [5]
The glabrous phyllaries of S. kentuckiense are in 4 to 6 unequal to subequal rows, [5] linear-subulate [lower-alpha 13] [lower-alpha 15] in shape, and gradually acuminate. [lower-alpha 4] [8] The margins of each phyllary may appear white or light green but are translucent. The phyllaries have green chlorophyllous zones that are diamond-shaped to lanceolate [lower-alpha 14] with apices that are acute [lower-alpha 3] to long-acuminate, [lower-alpha 4] mucronate [lower-alpha 6] to apiculate, [lower-alpha 18] such that they could be tapering to a slender point. [5] They are revolute (they roll inwards on the margins) [8] and spread away from the head. [5]
Each flower head is made up of ray florets and disk florets. The 20 to 28 [lower-alpha 19] ray florets grow in one series and are usually blue-violet, rarely white. They are usually between 9 and 15 mm (0.35 and 0.59 in) in length, but can be as short as 7 mm (0.28 in) and as long as 19 mm (0.75 in). They are 0.6 to 2.1 mm (0.02 to 0.08 in) wide. [5]
The disks have 33 to 51 [lower-alpha 20] florets that start out as yellow and after opening, turn brown after pollination. Each disk floret is 3.4 to 4.6 mm (0.13 to 0.18 in) in depth (sometimes up to 5 mm (0.2 in)), and is made up of 5 petals, collectively a corolla, which open into 5 lanceolate lobes comprising 0.5 to 1 mm (0.02 to 0.04 in) of the depth of the floret. [5]
The fruits (seeds) of Symphyotrichum kentuckiense are not true achenes but are cypselae, resembling an achene but surrounded by a calyx sheath. This is true for all members of the Asteraceae family. [12] After pollination, they become tan to brown with an obovoid [lower-alpha 9] shape, 1.5 to 2.1 mm (0.06 to 0.08 in) in length with 4 to 5 thin nerves, and with a few stiff, slender bristles on their surfaces (strigillose). They also have tufts of hairs (pappi) which are white and 3 to 5 mm (0.12 to 0.20 in) in length. [5]
The species has a monoploid number (also called base number) of eight chromosomes (x = 8). It has eight sets of its chromosomes, meaning it is octaploid, giving it a total chromosome count of 64. [6]
Symphyotrichum kentuckiense is classified in subgenus Symphyotrichum section Symphyotrichum subsection Porteriani. This subsection contains four species in addition to S. kentuckiense: S. depauperatum , S. parviceps , S. pilosum , and S. porteri . [13] It is the only octaploid within the subsection. [6]
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Cladogram references
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The basionym of Symphyotrichum kentuckiense is Aster kentuckiensis. Its name with author citations is Symphyotrichum kentuckiense(Britton) Medley. The plant was formally described as a unique species and named Aster kentuckiensisBritton by botanist Nathaniel Lord Britton in 1901 in his publication Manual of the Flora of the Northern States and Canada. [14] The sample that was used by Britton as the holotype for A. kentuckiensis was collected in October 1898 by Sadie F. Price near Bowling Green, Kentucky. [8]
At the same time that she collected what became the holotype for Aster kentuckiensis, Sadie F. Price collected a similar plant that Britton named Aster priceaeBritton and included in its description that it is pubescent, or with soft hairs. [8] In later floras by other authors, A. kentuckiensis was synonymized to A. priceae. In a 2021 journal article by botanist Max E. Medley, elements of the morphologies of A. kentuckiensis and A. priceae were confirmed to have been erroneously combined, and sometimes the former was ignored. Notably, this treatment resulted in floras written prior to Medley's paper applying the glabrous trait to A. priceae and S. priceae, which is incorrect, as this plant is puberulent. [15]
In 1948, botanist Arthur Cronquist reduced Aster priceae to a variety of A. pilosus named A. pilosus var.priceae(Britton) Cronquist [16] which Medley posited was a conclusion "based on misidentified specimens and [was] not appropriate." [17] Subsequently, it was considered the non-hybrid species Symphyotrichum priceae(Britton) G.L.Nesom with S. kentuckiense and A. kentuckiensis as its taxonomic synonyms. [5] [9]
Medley suggested that the Aster priceae holotype and Britton's protologue were of the hybrid A. kentuckiensis ×A. pilosus var.pilosus. [15] He gave it the hybrid designation and acknowledged the name as Symphyotrichum ×priceae(Britton) G.L.Nesom , [3] with Aster priceaeBritton as its basionym. [18] Corrected synonyms of S. × priceae are A. priceae and A. pilosus var.priceae(Britton) Cronquist . As of October 2022 [update] , this hybrid name was accepted by Plants of the World Online (POWO). [3] The hybrid is a puberulent plant rather than a glabrous one, and its characteristics are intermediate between its parents. [9]
The specific epithet (second part of the scientific name) kentuckiense is a Latinization of the name of the state of Kentucky where the holotype was found. The hybrid's specific epithet priceae is a Latinization of the surname of the collector, Sadie F. Price. [8] The species has the common names of Kentucky aster, [6] Price's aster, [9] Miss Price's aster, Sadie's aster, [4] and lavender oldfield aster. [5] "Old field asters" is a common name for subsect. Porteriani. [13]
Symphyotrichum kentuckiense is endemic [4] to a limited range in the southeastern United States, specifically parts of Alabama, Georgia, Kentucky, and Tennessee. [6] Hybrid S. × priceae has been documented only in Kentucky. [3] S. kentuckiense grows in the Appalachian Mountain EPA Ecoregions Ridge and Valley (67) and Southwestern Appalachians (68), and in the Interior Plateau EPA Ecoregions of Interior Low Plateaus (71) and Interior River Valleys and Hills (72). [19] It is adapted to and known from breaks or cracks in limestone cedar glades or limestone roadsides. It can be found at 200 to 400 meters (660 to 1,310 feet) [5] in dry soil. [20]
S. kentuckiense [lower-alpha 1] is categorized on the United States National Wetland Plant List (NWPL) with the wetland indicator status rating of Facultative Upland (FACU) in the Eastern Mountains and Piedmont region (EMP). This rating means that it usually occurs in non-wetlands within its range, but can occasionally be found in wetlands. [21]
Symphyotrichum kentuckiense [lower-alpha 1] has coefficients of conservatism (C-values) in the Floristic Quality Assessment (FQA) [22] [23] of 7 and 8 depending on evaluation region. [19] The higher the C-value, the lower tolerance the species has for disturbance and the greater the likelihood that it is growing in a presettlement natural community. [24] When it grows in the Appalachian Mountain EPA Ecoregions of 67 and 68,S. kentuckiense has a C-value of 7. In the Interior Plateau EPA Ecoregions of 71 and 72, its C-value is 8. [19] Both of these C-values mean that its populations are found in high-quality remnant natural areas with little environmental degradation but can tolerate some periodic disturbance. [24]
As of October 2022 [update] , NatureServe listed S. kentuckiense [lower-alpha 1] as Apparently Secure (G4) globally; Apparently Secure (S4) in Georgia; Imperiled (S2) in Kentucky; and, Critically Imperiled (S1) in South Carolina. [lower-alpha 21] The species' global status was last reviewed on 2 May 1988. [1]
Symphyotrichum novae-angliae is a species of flowering plant in the aster family (Asteraceae) native to central and eastern North America. Commonly known as New England aster, hairy Michaelmas-daisy, or Michaelmas daisy, it is a perennial, herbaceous plant usually between 30 and 120 centimeters tall and 60 to 90 cm wide.
Symphyotrichum ericoides, known as white heath aster, frost aster, or heath aster, is a species of flowering plant in the family Asteraceae native to much of central and eastern North America. It has been introduced to parts of Europe and western Asia.
Symphyotrichum laeve is a flowering plant native to Canada, the United States, and Coahuila (Mexico). It has the common names of smooth blue aster, smooth aster, smooth-leaved aster, glaucous Michaelmas-daisy and glaucous aster.
Symphyotrichum lateriflorum is a species of flowering plant in the aster family (Asteraceae). Commonly known as calico aster, starved aster, and white woodland aster, it is native to eastern and central North America. It is a perennial and herbaceous plant that may reach heights up to 120 centimeters and widths up to 30 centimeters.
Symphyotrichum sericeum is a species of flowering plant in the family Asteraceae native to central North America. Commonly known as western silver aster, western silvery aster, and silky aster, it is a perennial, herbaceous plant that may reach 70 centimeters tall. Its flowers have purple ray florets and pink then purple disk florets, and its leaves are firm and silvery-green.
Symphyotrichum frondosum is a species of flowering plant in the family Asteraceae native to western North America. Commonly known as short-rayed alkali aster, it is an annual or perennial herbaceous plant that may reach 140 centimeters tall.
Symphyotrichum georgianum is a rare species of flowering plant in the Asteraceae, the aster family. Its common name is Georgia aster. It is native to the southeastern United States where it is known from Alabama, Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, and South Carolina. As of 2013, it may be extirpated from the state of Florida.
Symphyotrichum patens, commonly known as late purple aster or spreading aster, is a perennial, herbaceous plant found in the eastern United States.
Symphyotrichum ontarionis is a species of flowering plant in the family Asteraceae native to eastern North America. Commonly known as Ontario aster and bottomland aster, it is a perennial, herbaceous plant that may reach heights of 120 centimeters. Each flower head has many tiny florets put together into what appear as one.
Symphyotrichum racemosum is a species of flowering plant native to parts of the United States and introduced in Canada. It is known as smooth white oldfield aster and small white aster. It is a perennial, herbaceous plant in the family Asteraceae. It is a late-summer and fall blooming flower.
Symphyotrichum ciliatum is a species of flowering plant in the family Asteraceae native to North America and eastern Eurasia. Commonly known as rayless annual aster and rayless alkali aster, it is an annual, herbaceous plant that may reach over 70 centimeters in height. Each flower head has many whitish then pink disk florets and no ray florets ("rayless").
Symphyotrichum simmondsii is a species of flowering plant of the family Asteraceae endemic to the southeastern United States. Commonly known as Simmonds' aster, it is a colony-forming herbaceous perennial.
Symphyotrichum plumosum is a species of flowering plant in the family Asteraceae endemic to Florida in the United States. Commonly known as plumose aster, it is a perennial, herbaceous plant that may reach 40 to 100 centimeters tall. Its flowers have rose-purple ray florets and yellow turning to purple disk florets. It is of conservation concern.
Symphyotrichum potosinum is a species of flowering plant in the family Asteraceae native to Mexico and the U.S. state of Arizona. Commonly known as Santa Rita Mountain aster, it is a perennial, herbaceous plant that may reach heights of 15 to 45 centimeters.
Symphyotrichum retroflexum is a species of flowering plant in the family Asteraceae native to the southeastern United States. Commonly known as rigid whitetop aster, it is a perennial, herbaceous plant that may reach 40 to 100 centimeters tall. Its flowers have blue to purple ray florets and cream to pale yellow then pinkish disk florets. It is known only from the Blue Ridge Mountains in Alabama, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia, where it grows in wooded areas at elevations of 400–1,500 meters. As of September 2021, NatureServe classified it as Apparently Secure (G4); it had been reviewed last in 1994 and is marked as "needs review". There is an introduced presence of S. retroflexum in southeast China.
Symphyotrichum anomalum is a species of flowering plant in the family Asteraceae native to Arkansas, Illinois, Kansas, Missouri, and Oklahoma. Commonly known as manyray aster, it is a perennial, herbaceous plant that may reach 20 to 120 centimeters tall. Its flowers have lavender or blue to purple, seldom white, ray florets and cream or light yellow, then pinkish-purple disk florets. Its flowers are attractive to butterflies. The lower leaves have untoothed margins and are heart-shaped at the base.
Symphyotrichum undulatum is a species of flowering plant in the family Asteraceae native to eastern North America. Commonly known as wavyleaf aster, it is a perennial, herbaceous plant that flowers August through October and may reach heights between 30 and 160 centimeters.
Symphyotrichum spathulatum is a species of flowering plant in the family Asteraceae native to western North America including northwestern Mexico. Commonly known as western mountain aster, it is a perennial, herbaceous plant that may reach 20 to 80 centimeters tall. Its flowers, which open in July and August, have violet ray florets and yellow disk florets.
Symphyotrichum subspicatum is a species of flowering plant in the family Asteraceae native to western North America. Commonly known as Douglas's aster, it is a perennial, herbaceous plant that may reach 40 to 120 centimeters tall. Its flowers have violet ray florets and yellow then reddish disk florets.
Symphyotrichum chapmanii is a species of flowering plant in the family Asteraceae native to the Apalachicola River drainage basin of Alabama and Florida. Commonly known as savanna aster, it is a perennial, herbaceous plant that may reach 30 to 80 centimeters tall. Its flowers have purple to blue-lavender ray florets and pale yellow disk florets. It is a wetland species and is of conservation concern. It may be extirpated in Alabama.
Choose 'FQA Databases', then 'Compare Species Coefficients', then enter search term 'Symphyotrichum priceae'.