Aster ‘Fall’

Aster oblongifolium

Characteristics

Culture

Aster ‘Fall’ is a perennial and is hardy all the way to USDA zone 4, so it has no trouble at all with our winters in most of Texas. It prefers well-drained soil and needs very little water once established, so be careful not to over water it. And as with most of our native, low-water use plants, fertilization is really not necessary.  They want sun but can also take part sun to even shadier, but will perform best with at least 4 hours of sun. It doesn’t matter if it’s morning or afternoon sun; asters are very adaptable.

Noteworthy Characteristics

Symphyotrichum oblongifolium, commonly called aromatic aster, is a Texas native plant that typically occurs on limestone glades, slopes, prairies and dry open ground.  Fall aster is a smallish, mounding plant, usually staying less than 2′ tall and about as wide, although it can get as tall as 3′. It looks great planted in the foreground of other fall flowering plants, and along the edges of planting beds.  A bushy, stiff, compact, low-growing plant with hairy stems that features small, daisy-like flowers 1″ across with violet blue rays and yellow center disks. Rigid, toothless, oblong, blue-green leaves to 4″ long are, as the common name suggests, fragrant when crushed. Good cut flower. Attractive to butterflies.

Problems

No serious insect or disease problems. Some susceptibility to mildew. Some support may be needed for taller plants since stems may tend to splay apart in autumn from the weight of the bloom.

Garden Uses

Open shade gardens, native plant gardens or woodland gardens. Good for mass planting. These little guys are simply covered in flowers in October and November, making them a real show-stopper in the autumn landscape.  Bees, butterflies, and other insects love this plant for its fall nectar. Their top growth will die back with the first hard freeze. You can wait until spring to cut them back to ground level, or tidy up sooner. Generally, their tidy rosettes appear by early winter. Cut back the stalks to enjoy their winter groundcover. You can plant naturalizing spring bulbs among the rosettes for a pretty winter picture!