The Wild & Wonderful White Wood Aster
Somewhat accidentally, I’ve been noticing an abundance of white wood asters lately. Maybe it’s just a really good year for them, or maybe they’re popping up at a time when I need to see a bright, cheery, daisy-like flower the most. Versatile and found on nearly every continent, asters have been a symbol of renewal, hope, and fidelity across florilateral cultures, or those that place reverence in flowers and the messages they are emblematic of (yes, I made “florilateral” up just now, but spell check didn’t correct me and it just felt right). From my own backyard in the shady clay-soil suburbs to the naturalized preserved lands with reclaimed and aggregated soil around Pleasant Run, it seems Eurybia divaricata is experiencing something of a boom, and deserves to be venerated as such.
Without much fanfare, the small and often overlooked white daisy flowers of our native white wood aster begin to bloom towards the end of September, heralding the arrival of fall and the cusp of October. Admittedly, it wasn’t until I was immersed within the world of native plants that I even noticed white wood asters at all, which makes me just a small percentage of the vast majority of human beings that don’t realize this magical perennial is, in fact, a pollinator panacea and not a scourge of allergy-ridden weeds.
Synonymous with Aster divaricatus, Eurybia divaricata is commonly found among mixed woodlands, often found at the base of tree trunks nearby Christmas ferns and shade tolerant Solidago species. Its penchant for open, dry, deciduous woods with well draining soil makes Eurybia divaricata perfect for underplanting in naturalized forest edges, and its particular nature of volunteering itself in odd spots may allude to its ability to tolerate, and even thrive, in disturbed soils.
Although more commonly found in drier soils, white wood aster can also tolerate some moisture and is suitable for planting around rain gardens. When used in roof garden designs, it’s been discovered that Eurybia divaricata performs similarly whether in full sun or full shade, and is able to produce remarkably similar root masses despite the affluence or lack of irrigation.
Despite its ability to grow without much intervention or influence, white wood aster is actually a minimal self-seeder. Eurybia divaricata matures into a slowly spreading clump, rarely sending adventitious roots to its nearby periphery but instead creating a dense mass of rhizomes below, and maintains itself as a tidy border perennial in average garden conditions.
Sprays of tiny white flowers with gold, yellow, and occasionally burgundy-maroon centers attract various pollinators, from honeybees to native bumble bees, hoverflies, and Lepidopterans, and their delicate yet abundant nature makes them perfect as a filler amongst larger flowering perennials in both the landscape and in fresh cut flower arrangements. It’s actually the act of pollination that causes the central disk flowers to transition from yellow to burgundy as they slowly mature to seed, which later are eaten by birds and small mammals in the colder months.
Our ‘Eastern Star’ white wood aster is something of a flower phenomenon, blooming seemingly nonstop from the end of August through October, heralding late season pollinators who are busy stocking up on last minute nutrients. Chosen for its compact habit, dark purplish, sultry stems from where rich green foliage emerges, and the explosion of sharply contrasting bright white flowers, ‘Eastern Star’ white wood aster hits all the marks as a stunning woodland selection tolerant of black walnut trees and capable of handling drought, deer, and rocky or clay soils, blooming in shade all the while.
