Aster

Aster

Aster

Genus:	Aster
Family:	Asteraceae
Type:	Annuals, biennials, perennials, and subshrubs
Pruning tolerance:	High

The genus Aster (syn. Diplopappus Cass.) includes some 600 species of widely distributed flowering plants in the family Asteraceae. Aster comes from the Greek word for "star", and refers to the shape of the flower head. Many species and a variety of hybrids and varieties are now popular as garden plants because of their showy flower heads.

The genus Aster is now generally restricted to the Old World species, with Aster amellus being the type species of the genus (and of the family Asteraceae). The New World species have now been reclassified in the genera Almutaster, Canadanthus, Doellingeria, Eucephalus, Eurybia, Ionactis, Oligoneuron, Oreostemma, Sericocarpus and Symphyotrichum (see : List of Aster synonyms on Wikipedia), but are still widely referred to as "Asters" in the horticultural trade.

In the United Kingdom there are only two native members of the genus of which one, Goldilocks is very rare, the other being the Sea aster, Aster tripolium.

Description

The flowers are heads, borne in generally large terminal clusters. Rays female and strap-shaped, disk flowers perfect, usually yellow. Involcure green and of several rows. The seeds are achenes with a bristly pappus.

The leaves are alternate and simple.

Species

Some common species are:

Aster alpinus
Aster amellus ('European Michaelmas Daisy' or 'Italian Aster')
Aster cordifolius ('Blue Wood Aster')
Aster divaricatus ('White Wood Aster')
Aster ericoides ('Heath Aster')
Aster laevis
Aster lateriflorus ('Lady in Black')
Aster linosyris ('Goldilocks Aster')
Aster novae-angliae ('New England Aster')
Aster novi-belgii ('New York Aster')
Aster pilosus ('Frost Aster')
Aster pringlei
Aster scaber
Aster sibericus
Aster tataricus
Aster tongolensis
Aster tripolium ('Sea Aster')

The China aster is in a related genus, Callistephus.

Uses

Asters make good fresh cut flowers. In the garden they are an excellent nectar source for attracting pollinators and beneficial insects.

Propagation

Division, seed.

Pests and Diseases

Powdery Mildew

Erisiphe cichoracearum

Leaf Spots

Alternaria
Ascochyta compositarium
Cercospora asterata
Cercospora cana
Discosphaerina pseudimantia
Leptothyrium doellingeriae
Ovularia asteris
Ovularia virgaureae
Phyllachora asterigens
Ramularia asteris
Septoria asteris
Septoria astericola

Downy Mildew

Basidiophora entospora

Gray Mold Wilt

Fusarium oxysporum f. callistephi
Verticillium

Cankers Rusts

Coleosporium solidagnis: Alternate hosts 2/3 needle pines
Puccinia asteris: Alternate hosts grasses and sedges
Puccinia extensicola var. asteris: Alternate hosts grasses and sedges
Puccinia grindeliae: Alternate hosts grasses and sedges
Puccinia stipae:
Uromyces compactus: Alternate hosts grasses and sedges
Uromyces junci: Alternate hosts grasses and sedges

White Smut

Aster Yellows

Dodder

Aphids

Leaf Curl Plum Aphid: Brachycaudus helichrysi
Brown Ambrosia Aphid: Dactynotus ambrosiae
Aphid: Macrosiphum artemesiae
Aphid: Macrosiphum asterifoliae
Crescent-marked Lily Aphid: Neomyzus circumflexus
Petiole Gall Aphid: Pemphigus spp.:
Erigeron Root Aphid: Aphis middletoni
Western Aster Root Aphid: Aphis armoraciae

Hoppers

Aster Leaf Hopper: Macrosteles facifrons
Treehopper: Entylia carniata

Bugs

Tarnished Plant Bug: Lygus lineolaris
Chrysanthemum Lace Bug: Corythucha marmorata

Earwigs

European Earwig: Forficula auricularia

Whitefly

Greenhouse Whitefly: Trialeurodes vaporariorum
Silverleaf Whitefly: Bemisia argentifolii
Iris Whitefly: Aleyrodes spiraeoides

Maggots

Leafminer: Amauromyza maculosa
American Serpentine Leaf Miner: Liriomyza trifolii

Beetles

Japanese Beetle: Popillia japonica
Blister Beetles: Epicauta spp.

Weevils

Black Vine Weevil: Otiorhynchus sulcatus

Caterpillars

Clearwing Borer: Carmenta corni
European Corn Borer: Ostrinia nubilalis
Soybean Looper: Pseudoplusia includens

(w:list of Lepidoptera which feed on Aster) Mites

Cyclamen Mite: Steneotarsonemus pallidus

Slugs and Snails

References

Britton, Nathaniel Lord (1913). An Illustrated Flora of the Northern United States and Canada, Volume 3 (second edition ed.). Dover Publications, inc. pp. 406–433. {{cite book}}: |edition= has extra text (help); Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
Ann Fowler Rhoads and Timothy A. Block (2000). The Plants of Pennsylvania: An Illustrated Manual. Anna Anisko, illustrator. Morris Arboretum, University of Pennsylvania Press. pp. 176–188.
P. D. Strausbaugh and Earl L. Core (1977). Flora of West Virginia (Second ed.). Seneca Books, Grantsville, W. Virginia. pp. 942–955.
Christopher Brickell and Judith D. Zuk (1997). The American Horticultural Society A-Z Encyclopedia of Garden Plants. DK Publishing. pp. 148–150.
Staff of the L. H. Bailey Hortorium (1976). Hortus Third: A Concise Dictionary of Plants Cultivated in the United States and Canada. Cornell University Press. pp. 121–125.
Pirone, Pascal P. (1978). Diseases & Pests of Ornamental Plants (Fifth Edition ed.). John Wiley & Sons, New York. pp. 146–147. {{cite book}}: |edition= has extra text (help)
Cranshaw, Whitney (2004). Garden Insects of North America: The Ultimate Guide to Backyard Bugs. Princeton University Press. p. 581.
Pippa Greenwood, Andrew Halstead, A.R. Chase, Daniel Gilrein (2000). American Horticultural Society Pests & Diseases: The Complete Guide to Preventing, Identifying, and Treating Plant Problems (First Edition ed.). Dorling Kindersley (DK) Publishing, inc. p. 198. {{cite book}}: |edition= has extra text (help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)