New Yorkers will enjoy beautiful purple against red-and-yellow leaves this fall season with New York Asters (Symphyotrichum novi-belgii), a native wildflower found across the state.
In the wild, New York Aster ranges from Newfoundland and Nova Scotia south to Georgia, and even Alabama, chiefly near the coast.
It is found from seaside marshes to inland wetlands growing in slightly brackish and tidal fresh marshes, occasionally borders of salt marshes; inland marshes, shrub marshes, shores and other moist areas.
In a garden it requires well-drained soil and prefers sandy, loamy and clay soils. It can grow on nutritionally poor soil, in semi-shade or no shade but prefers a sunny location. With some cultivars, aster flowers might show a purple, pink or white color.
Aster are a favorite of butterflies, growing fast in clusters that may reach as much as six feet tall. Pollinators such as butterflies and moths benefit from feeding on aster leaves in the caterpillar stage of their life cycle.
Plant this native perennial in your yard and it will grow back year after year.
For more native plant suggestions check out this guide to native plants, groundcovers, shrubs, trees, and vines and learn more about New York Aster here.
Photo: New York Aster in bloom, courtesy of Patrick Standish, provided by DEC.
Many thanks for this link to the DEC guide. Every year I need a refresher.
Refresher, indeed, Phil. Otherwise my short-term memory would blow away in a cloud of dust. My sympathies.