Walter's Aster

Symphyotrichum walteri

Walter's Aster is a beautiful flower that blooms in late summer and early fall. It has pretty purple petals and attracts butterflies and bees, making gardens lively and colorful!

Habitat: Wetlands

Appearance

The Walter's Aster has numerous small, daisy-like flowers with white or sometimes pale lavender ray petals surrounding a bright yellow center that ages to reddish-purple. Its dark green leaves are broadly heart-shaped and often clasp the stem, making it visually distinct from many narrower-leaved asters.

KingdomPlantaePhylumTracheophytaClassMagnoliopsidaOrderAsteralesFamilyAsteraceaeGenusSymphyotrichum

Walter's Aster

Interesting facts

It's like a late-season energy bar for hungry bees and butterflies!

Its scientific name honors botanist Thomas Walter, who first described it!

The plant’s leaves can be heart-shaped or even spear-shaped!

This aster can thrive in many types of open woodland edges.

Special abilities

Walter's Aster has flower centers that change color from yellow to reddish-purple, helping older flowers signal they've been pollinated!

Walter's Aster can spread by underground stems called rhizomes, allowing it to form dense patches and secure its space.

Walter's Aster blooms late in the season, providing a vital nectar and pollen source for insects when other flowers are scarce.

Measurements & details

Height: 30-90 cm
Spread: 30-60 cm
Flower Size: 0.5-1.5 cm
Bloom Season: Late summer to fall (August-November)
Edible: No
Toxicity: None
Lifecycle: Perennial
Pollination Method: Insect

Ecological connections

pollinates

European honey bee

Apis mellifera

collects nectar and pollen

pollinates

Monarch butterfly

Danaus plexippus

sips nectar for energy

pollinates

Common eastern bumblebee

Bombus impatiens

gathers pollen and nectar

eaten by

White-tailed deer

Odocoileus virginianus

browses on leaves and stems

Traits

Deciduous

Deciduous plants periodically shed all their leaves, typically during autumn or dry seasons.

Flowering

Flowering plants are any plants that produce flowers as part of their reproductive cycle.

Summer Blooming

Summer blooming plants produce their flowers during the summer season, often providing vibrant color when many other plants have finished.

Colorful

Colorful describes organisms or objects displaying a wide range of bright and distinct colors.

Pollinator Magnet

Describes plants that are particularly attractive and beneficial to a wide range of pollinating organisms.

Wetland

This habitat trait identifies species found in wetlands, which are areas of land saturated with water, either permanently or seasonally, including marshes, swamps, and bogs.