Aster, Climbing

Description

Botanical Name:  Symphyotrichum carolinianum

Common Name:  Climbing Aster

Description:  This is yet another of our gorgeous Florida native asters.

Per the Florida Wildflower Foundation: “Climbing aster (Symphyotrichum carolinianum) is a sprawling vine-like shrub that occurs naturally in coastal hammocks and wet flatwoods, and along the edges of swamps, springs and streams. As a late fall- and winter-flowering species, it helps extend the options for nectar and pollen available to pollinators. It is one of the few wildflowers that will bloom in December. Flowers draw a myriad of native bees, including polyester, sweat, cuckoo, leafcutter, mining, bumble, and chimney bees. Butterflies and moths also love them: Monarchs, Pearl crescents, skippers, fritillaries, Common buckeyes, Gray hairstreaks, swallowtails and sulphurs have been known to frequent the flowers for nectar.

The compound flowers have dense centers of yellow-orange disk florets surrounded by many ray florets that vary in color from lavender to purplish-pink to violet. Flowers are 1 to 2 inches in diameter and have a very sweet fragrance. Leaves are grayish-green and elliptic to ovate with entire margins and are born alternately on branches. The seed is an achene with a fluffy pappus.”

It grows just fine in moderately dry to moist sandy, loamy, clay, or organic soils. This is a great candidate for your rain garden, but it doesn’t like to be continuously in standing water. Plant it in sun, part sun, or part shade areas of your garden. I wouldn’t call it drought tolerant though.

It is a host plant for the Pearl Crescent (Phyciodes tharos) butterfly.

If you have it growing up something, such as a trellis or fence or tree, it will climb about 8-12 feet. If it is not grown on anything for support, it will mature at about 5 feet tall and wide, somewhat like a shrub. It is a long-lived, fast growing, perennial vine. Its sprawling habit also looks nice growing along the banks of ponds or flowing over low fences/walls. It’ll use other plants as support, so make sure it’s not planted next to small plants that can be smothered. It can easily be divided if it outgrows where it is planted. Is moderately deer resistant.

Not salt tolerant of inundation by salty or brackish water. Low/no tolerance of salty wind or direct salt spray.

This plant in 1-gallon containers is 5 – 15 inches tall.

Plant Lore:  There are 331 aster species native to Florida, with 41 species endemic to Florida.

Florida Hardiness Zones 8 – 10