Growing Guide
 
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Aster, New York (tall varieties)

Herbaceous Perennial Flower

Also known as Michaelmas Daisy
Aster novi-belgi tall varieties
Asteraceae Family

This native of eastern North America is an autumn-flowering gem with blooms ranging from pale pink to deep purple. There are hundreds of cultivars of this popular aster.

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Site Characteristics
Sunlight:
  • full sun
  • part shade

Soil conditions:

  • requires well-drained soil

Hardiness zones:

  • 4 to 8
Plant Traits

Lifecycle: perennial

Ease-of-care: easy

Height: 2.5 to 4 feet

Spread: 1 to 1.5 feet

Bloom time:

  • late summer
  • early fall

Typically in full flower around September 29, the Feast of St. Michael, hence their common name of Michaelmas Daisy.

Flower color:

  • blue
  • indigo
  • violet
  • white
  • pink

Usually purple with yellow centers, but hybrids are available with pink, white, and blue blooms.

Foliage color:

  • medium green
  • dark green

Foliage texture: medium

Shape: upright

Shape in flower: flower stalks with upright spikes

Special Considerations
Special characteristics:
  • non-aggressive
  • non-invasive
  • native to North America - Native to eastern North America
Special uses:
  • cut flowers - The cut flowers are attractive but short-lived. New England asters (A. novae-angliea) last longer.
  • wildflowers
  • naturalistic garden
Growing Information
How to plant:

Propagate by division or separation - Divide at least every 2 years to maintain health. Space to allow for good air circulation when replanting.

May self-seed. Hybrids may not breed true.

Maintenance and care:
Tall varieties are more likely to require staking. Pinching or cutting them back several times before late July will reduce their height, increase bushiness, delay flowering, produce more flowers and reduce staking needs.

To reduce foliage diseases, thin stems so they are about 1 inch apart. Cutting the outer stems lower than those to the inside of the plant encourages a fuller, more rounded shape.

Deadhead or cut plants to the ground after flowering to prevent self-seeding. Self-seeded plants aren't true to parental type.

Divide every 1 to 2 years in spring.

More growing information: How to Grow Perennials

Pests:
Rosy blister gall
Aphids
Tarsonemid mites
Nematodes
Slugs and snails


Diseases:
Verticillium wilt
Gray mold
Powdery mildew
Rust
White smut
Aster yellows
Leaf spots
Stem cankers
Varieties
These varieties are all more than 2 feet tall. See separate listing for short varieties.

‘Ada Ballard’ grows 3 feet tall and has violet-blue blooms.

‘Bonningale White’ grows 3.5 feet tall and has double white blooms.

‘Coombe Margaret’ grows 3.5 feet tall and has semi-double rosy pink blooms.

‘Crimson Brocade’ grows 3 feet tall and has semidouble deep red blooms.

‘Eventide’ grows 3 feet tall and has semidouble purple blooms.

‘Marie Ballard’ grows 2.5 feet tall and has double pale blue blooms.

‘Patricia Ballard’ grows 2.5 feet tall and has double, deep pink blooms.

‘White Lady’ grows 5 to 6 feet tall and has white blooms with orange-yellow centers.

‘Winston Churchill’ grows 2.5 feet tall and has vivid red blooms.