Spermatophytes (seed plants): Angiosperms (flowering plants): Eudicots: Core Eudicots: Asterids: Campanulids: Asterales
WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (2/10/25):
Symphyotrichum prenanthoides
FAMILY
Asteraceae
Go to FSUS key
Dig deeper at SERNEC, a consortium of southeastern herbaria.
Test-drive A Teaching Key to Asters.
Read more about Crooked-stem Aster at Vascular Plants of North Carolina.
SYNONYMOUS WITH
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Symphyotrichum prenanthoides
FAMILY
Asteraceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH Floristic Synthesis of North America. BONAP (Kartesz, 2021)
Symphyotrichum prenanthoides
SYNONYMOUS WITH Vascular flora of Illinois (Mohlenbrock, 2014)
Symphyotrichum prenanthoides
SYNONYMOUS WITH Flora of North America north of Mexico, vol. 19-20-21 (2006)
Symphyotrichum prenanthoides
SYNONYMOUS WITH VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 179-47-022:
Aster prenanthoides FAMILY Asteraceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)
Aster prenanthoides
COMMON NAME:
Zigzag Aster, Crooked-stem Aster
To see larger pictures, click or hover over the thumbnails.
)
USDA-NRCS PLANTS Database / Britton, N.L., and A. Brown. 1913 pnd_aspr4_001_lvd
)
JK Marlow jkm121006_305
October Washington County VA
Virginia Creeper Trail
)
JK Marlow jkm121006_309
October Washington County VA
Virginia Creeper Trail
Leaves taper to a long winged petiole-like base w clasping auricular lobes, per Wildflowers of the Southern Mountains (Smith, 1998).
)
JK Marlow jkm121006_314
October Washington County VA
Virginia Creeper Trail
)
JK Marlow jkm121006_315
October Washington County VA
Virginia Creeper Trail
Stem zigzags, per Newcomb's Wildflower Guide (Newcomb, 1977).
)
JK Marlow jkm121006_327
October Washington County VA
Virginia Creeper Trail
Disc florets cream-colored or light yellow becoming purple or brown, per Flora of North America.
)
JK Marlow jkm121006_328
October Washington County VA
Virginia Creeper Trail
The 1" heads have 20-35 blue or lavender rays, per Wildflowers of the Southern Mountains (Smith, 1998).
)
JK Marlow jkm121006_328329
October Washington County VA
Virginia Creeper Trail
Long-pointed ovate-lanceolate sharply toothed blades taper below the middle, per Wildflowers of the Southern Mountains (Smith, 1998).
WEAKLEY'S FLORA OF THE SOUTHEASTERN US (2/10/25):
Symphyotrichum prenanthoides
FAMILY
Asteraceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
PLANTS NATIONAL DATABASE:
Symphyotrichum prenanthoides
FAMILY
Asteraceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
Floristic Synthesis of North America. BONAP (Kartesz, 2021)
Symphyotrichum prenanthoides
SYNONYMOUS WITH
Vascular flora of Illinois (Mohlenbrock, 2014)
Symphyotrichum prenanthoides
SYNONYMOUS WITH
Flora of North America north of Mexico, vol. 19-20-21
Symphyotrichum prenanthoides
SYNONYMOUS WITH
VASCULAR FLORA OF THE CAROLINAS (Radford, Ahles, & Bell, 1968) 179-47-022:
Aster prenanthoides
FAMILY
Asteraceae
SYNONYMOUS WITH
Manual of the Southeastern Flora (Small, 1933, 1938)
Aster prenanthoides
165
Forb
Perennial
Habitat: Moist or wet forests, roadbanks, fields, per Weakley's Flora
Native to North Carolina & Georgia
Common in NC Mountains (rare elsewhere in GA-NC-SC)
CLICK HERE to see a map, notes, and images from Weakley's Flora of the Southeastern US.
LEAVES:
Simple
Alternate (basal leaves absent or withered at flowering)
FLOWER:
Summer/Fall
Rays: Blue/ Violet
(rarely white)
Disc: Cream or yellow becoming purple or brown
Inferior ovary
Disc flowers bisexual & fertile/ Ray flowers pistillate & fertile
Flower heads in broad, ± flat, corymb-panicle-like arrays, branches spreading to ascending
FRUIT:
Summer/Fall
Achene
TO LEARN MORE about this plant, look it up in a good book!
- Newcomb's Wildflower Guide (Newcomb, 1977) p456
- Wildflowers of the Atlantic Southeast (Cotterman, Waitt, & Weakley, 2019) p439
- Wildflowers of the Eastern United States (Duncan & Duncan, 1999) p113
- Wildflowers of the Southern Mountains (Smith, 1998) p210
If a search such as "Carex leptalea var. leptalea" doesn't deliver the results you want, try "Carex leptalea".
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