Plant Type

Perennial

 

Height Range

1-3'

 

Flower Color

Blue

 

Flower Season

Fall

 

Leaf Color

Green

 

Bark Color

n/a

 

Fruit Color

n/a

 

Fruit Season

n/a

Sun

Full, Half

 

Water

Low, Medium

 

Growth Rate

Moderate

 

Soil Type

Sandy, Clay, Loam, Rocky, Unparticular

 

Soil Condition

Average, Rich, Poor, Well-drained, Dry

 

Soil pH

Neutral

 

Adverse Factors

Invasive

Design Styles

English Cottage, Meadow, Ranch, Woodland

 

Accenting Features

Showy Flowers

 

Seasonal Interest

Fall

 

Location Uses

Background, Entry, Walls / Fences

 

Special Uses

Cut Flowers, Mass Planting, Naturalizing

 

Attracts Wildlife

Butterflies

Bushy aster is a rather course, open aster growing between 2 to 3 feet high and wide, with an upright to floppy habit. It has small soft violet-blue to white flowers with yellow eyes, that blooms August until October. Given all the fancy hybrid asters, it might seem this one is a little out of place, but it is rugged and tough, and quite well suited to a more naturally-styled landscape or woodland setting. It will spread with the very slightest of encouragement.

Grow in average, medium to dry, well-drained soils in full sun to part shade. Pinching back stems in late spring will lower overall plant height, but will also delay bloom onset and increase branches, increasing the number of blooms. A light winter mulch will help protect crowns. Cut stems to the ground in early spring before new growth appears. Wet soils in winter can be fatal.