There's A Risk To Being An Aster
It's late fall right now, heading quickly to Thanksgiving, and my asters are still blooming. Many of the nearly 12 species that I now have in my landscape have finished and turned to ripened seed, but a few have just started. The calico asters ( Symphyotrichum laterifolium ) are winding down are the Georgia asters ( Symphyotrichum georgianum ), but my rice button aster ( Symphyotrichum dumosum ) is still covered in open flowers, my Carolina asters ( Symphyotrichum carolinianum ) are just starting, and my scaleleaf aster ( Symphyotrichum adnatum ) has yet to bloom, though it is now covered in buds. Asters are the ultimate risk takers among the flowering plant world and each year they play that out. There are great benefits to blooming so late, but great risks as well. By blooming this late, asters ensure that they are the only game in town. There are very few flowering plants native to this latitude in bloom at this time. The others have done their thing and moved on t...