Symphyotrichum is a genus of over 100 species and naturally occurring hybrids of herbaceous annual and perennial plants in the composite family, Asteraceae, most which were formerly treated within the genus Aster. The majority are endemic to North America, but several also occur in the West Indies, Central and South America, as well as one species in eastern Eurasia. Several species have been introduced to Europe as garden specimens, most notably New England aster and New York aster.
Symphyotrichum puniceum, is a species of flowering plant in the family Asteraceae native to eastern North America. It is commonly known as purplestem aster, red-stalk aster, red-stemmed aster, red-stem aster, and swamp aster. It also has been called early purple aster, cocash, swanweed, and meadow scabish.
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 ascendens is a species of flowering plant in the family Asteraceae known by the common names western aster, long-leaved aster, and Rocky Mountain aster. Blooming July–September, it is native to western North America and can be found at elevations of 500–3,200 m (1,600–10,500 ft) in several habitats.
Symphyotrichum defoliatum is a species of flowering plant in the family Asteraceae known by the common name San Bernardino aster. It is endemic to Southern California where it grows in grasslands and meadows, and it is of conservation concern.
Symphyotrichum lanceolatum is a species of flowering plant in the family Asteraceae native to North America. Common names include panicled aster, lance-leaved aster, and white panicled aster. It is a perennial, herbaceous plant that may reach 1.5 meters tall or more, sometimes approaching 2 m. The lance-shaped leaves are generally hairless but may feel slightly rough to the touch on the top because of tiny bristles. The flowers grow in clusters and branch in panicles. They have 16–50 white ray florets that are up to 14 millimeters long and sometimes tinged pink or purple. The flower centers consist of disk florets that begin as yellow and become purple as they mature.
Symphyotrichum falcatum is a species of flowering plant in the family Asteraceae. Commonly called white prairie aster and western heath aster, it is native to a widespread area of central and western North America.
Symphyotrichum dumosum is a species of flowering plant of the family Asteraceae commonly known as rice button aster and bushy aster. It is native to much of eastern and central North America, as well as Haiti and Dominican Republic. It is a perennial, herbaceous plant that may reach a height of 1 meter.
Symphyotrichum subulatum, commonly known as eastern annual saltmarsh aster or, in Britain and Ireland where it is naturalized, annual saltmarsh aster, is an annual plant in the family Asteraceae native to the eastern United States and the Gulf Coast to Texas. The species grows primarily in coastal salt marshes, although in the Ozarks it occurs as a non-marine weedy variety.
Symphyotrichum shortii, commonly called Short's aster, is a species of flowering plant in the family Asteraceae. It is native to North America, where it is primarily found in interior areas east of the Mississippi River. Its natural habitat is in thin rocky soils of woodlands and thickets often around limestone bluffs. It is common throughout much of its range, although it is generally restricted to intact natural communities.
Symphyotrichum patens, commonly known as late purple aster or spreading aster, is a perennial, herbaceous plant found in the eastern United States.
Symphyotrichum urophyllum is a species of flowering plant in the family Asteraceae native to eastern North America, commonly known as arrowleaf aster.
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 tenuifolium is a species of flowering plant in the family Asteraceae and is commonly known as perennial saltmarsh aster. It is a perennial and herbaceous plant native to the eastern United States and the West Indies. There is one variety, S. tenuifolium var. aphyllum in addition to the autonym S. tenuifolium var. tenuifolium.
Symphyotrichum yukonense is a species of flowering plant in the family Asteraceae endemic to disjunct areas in Alaska and the Canadian territories of Yukon and Northwest Territories. Commonly known as Yukon aster, it is a perennial, herbaceous plant 5 to 30 centimeters in height. Its flowers have purple to blue ray florets and yellow to brown disk florets. S. yukonense grows at elevations of 300–1,500 meters in mud flats and on sandy or silty lake shores. It is a NatureServe Vulnerable (G3) species and is classified Imperiled (S2) in its Canadian range.
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.
