Walter's aster is a herbaceous perennial in the Asteraceae family that is native to North Carolina south to Florida in sandhills and pine flatwoods. This species occurs in well-drained sandy soils, often as a component of longleaf pine savanna understory This plant grows from 8 inches to 3.4 feet tall and has an erect to sprawling habit. It tolerates a range of moisture conditions from dry/xeric to moist and prefers full sun to partial shade. The minute triangular leaves, which are often downcurved and fleshy to the touch, make this species unmistakable among the often-confusing asters. The flowers emerge in late autumn and feature yellow florets surrounded by a whorl of lavender rays. They are pollinated by a variety of insects. Use Walter's aster in native gardens and pollinator gardens in the Coastal Plain. This adaptable plant is easy to maintain once established and provides color at a time when few other herbaceous plants are flowering. Insects, Diseases, and Other Plant Problems: No significant problems. Watch for southern blight. More information on Symphyotrichum .
Curated pairwise relationships between this plant and others in the library — who feeds
whom, who competes, who confuses the pests. Green reads as a good pairing, red as one to avoid.
No curated interactions recorded for this species yet.
Also noted by NC State
Related species the NC State Plant Toolbox flags for this plant — look-alikes to tell
apart, and plants that play a similar role in a planting. Ones we carry in the library are linked.
Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day) | Partial Shade (Direct sunlight only part of the day, 2-6 hours)
Soil texture
Loam (Silt); Sand
Soil pH
Acid (<6.0); Neutral (6.0-8.0)
Soil drainage
Good Drainage | Moist | Occasionally Dry
Available space
Less than 12 inches
NC region
Coastal
Growth rate
Medium
Maintenance
Low
Canopy layer
5 - Groundcover
Form & Appearance
Habit / form
Erect; Prostrate
Texture
Medium
Leaf color
Green
Leaf type
Simple
Leaf arrangement
Alternate
Leaf shape
Deltoid; Linear
Leaf margin
Entire
Leaf feel
Fleshy
Leaf size
< 1 inch long, < 1 inch wide
Hairs present
No
Leaf detail
Leaves unmistakable; tiny, sessile, linear to hastate, and abruptly reflexed or folded downwards. Leaf arrangement is alternate, often somewhat spiraled. Leaves fleshy to the touch, scabrous at margins.
Flower color
Gold/Yellow; Purple/Lavender
Flower value
Showy
Flower form
Head
Flower shape
Radial
Flower size
1-3 inches
Flower detail
Inflorescence composite, with 11-26 blue-lavender ray florets surrounding yellow disk florets in the center. The base of the flower head is cuplike with many green sepal-like bracts.
Bloom time
Fall
Fruit color
Brown/Copper; Cream/Tan
Fruit type
Achene
Fruit size
< 1 inch long
Fruit detail
2-2.5mm, tan to brown, obovoid, sparsely to moderately strigose, not compressed.
Stem color
Blue; Green; Red/Burgundy
Stem detail
Stems rough, green to red-brown, erect or sprawling, branched from middle, glabrous or sparsely fine strigose.
Wildlife & Ecology
Native status
Native
Origin
SE USA
Distribution
FL, GA, NC, SC
Wildlife value
Provides nectar to bees, butterflies, and other pollinators in late fall and early winter, when other flowers may be scarce. Seeds eaten by birds.