Aster shortii Lindl.

• Authority

  Gleason, Henry A. & Cronquist, Arthur J. 1991. Manual of vascular plants of northeastern United States and adjacent Canada. lxxv + 910 pp.

• Family

  Asteraceae

• Scientific Name

  Aster shortii Lindl.

• Description

  Species Description - Plants with a short, branched caudex; stems 3–12 dm, glabrous or nearly so below, spreading-hirtellous above; lvs entire or occasionally few-toothed, glabrous or scaberulous above, spreading-hirtellous beneath, lanceolate or rather narrowly ovate, acute or acuminate, petiolate, nearly all those below the infl cordate or subcordate, the lower cauline ones usually deeply so, 6–15 × 2–6 cm, the basal ones, if persistent, often shorter, broader, more rounded, and somewhat toothed, the middle and upper cauline ones only gradually reduced; infl open, paniculiform, with numerous usually narrow bracts, the bracteate peduncles often very long; invol 4–6 mm, its bracts narrow, acute or the outer obtusish, well imbricate, usually minutely pubescent, with small, ± diamond-shaped green tip shorter than the chartaceous base; rays 10–20, blue (rose-red or white), 5–14 mm; achenes glabrous; 2n=16, ?18, ?36. Woods; sw. Pa. and adj. W.Va. and nw. Md. to Ky., Tenn., w. Ga., and ec. Ala., w. to se. Minn., ne. Io., and ne. Miss.; Ark. (A. camptosorus)

• Common Names

  midwestern blue heart-leaved aster