Aster L.

Herbs or shrubs, rootstock usually rhizomatous; stems usually leafy, branched or unbranched, pubescent, villous, glandular or eglandular. Leaves alternate, cordate, ovate, elliptic, lanceolate, linear or spathulate, sessile or stalked. Heads solitary or many, corymbose or panicled. Involucre hemispheric or campanulate; bracts few to many· seriate, subequal, imbricate. Ray florets, white, pink, purplish or blue, female, 1 - 2-seriate; ligule relatively long or broad. Disc florets yellow or purplish, bisexual, usually ca 1 mm broad, 5-lobed. Receptacle flat or convex, foveolate or fimbrillate, sometimes pseudo paleaceous. Anther bases obtuse or entire. Achenes compressed.

America, Euresia and Africa; ca 60 species, ca 23 in India.

Literature. GRIERSON, A.J.C. (1964) A revision of the Asters of the Himalayan area. Notes Roy. Bot. Gard. Edinb. 26: 67-163. f. 1-11, t. 8-16.

KEY TO THE SPECIES

1a. Heads usually many

2

b. Heads solitary or up to 4

11

2a. Pappus usually reddish or reddish broown

3

b. Pappus usually white or buff

7

3a. Heads ca 6 mm across

2. Aster albescens

b. Heads usually 10-15 mm across

4

4a. Pappus usually 2.5-3 mm long

5

b. Pappus usually 5 mm long

6

5a. Leaves distantly denticulate; ligules ca 7 mm long

18. Aster sikkimensis

b. Leaves entire; ligules ca 1.0-1.5 cm long

3. Aster altaicus

6a. Involucral bracts spathulate

1. Aster ageratoides

b. Involucral bracts linear

22. Aster trinervius

7a. Heads 2.0-3.5 cm across

8

b. Heads 0.6-1.5 cm across

9

8a. Leaves elliptic or oblanceolate, 1.0-5.0 x 0.5-1.5 cm

11. Aster indamellus

b. Leaves ovate or lanceolate, 3-15 x 1.5-7.5 cm

15. Aster peduncularis

9a. Heads usually 0.6-0.8 cm across

17. Aster pycnophyllus

b. Heads usually 1-1.5 cm across

10

10a. Herbs, flexuose, glabrous or puberulous; leaves 6-17 x 1.5-5 cm

18. Aster sikkimensis

b. Herbs, densely glandular pubescent; leaves 2.5-6.5 x 0.5 -1.5 cm

23. Aster vestitus

11a. Heads usually 2.5-8 cm across

12

b. Heads usually up to 2 cm across

19

12a. Ligules 2.5-3.5 cm long

13

b. Ligules up to 2 cm long

14

13a. Upper parts of peduncle naked; involucral bracts usually uniseriate

6. Aster diplostephioides

b. Upper parts of peduncle leafy; involucral bracts usually 2-3-seriate

7. Aster falconeri

14a. Pappus hairs red or pale brown

15

b. Pappus hairs whitish

17

15a. Leaves acuminate

20. Aster thomsonii

b. Leaves obtuse or acute

16

16a. Pappus hairs reddish

21. Aster tricephalus

b. Pappus hairs brown

16. Aster platylepsis

17a. Herbs, rarely more than 15 cm high

8. Aster flaccidus

b. Herbs, up to 80 cm high 18

0

18a. Leaves ovate or lanceolate

15. Aster peduncularis

b. Leaves usually linear-elliptic or obovate-oblong

13. Aster molliusculus

19a. Pappus yellow white or pinkish

20

b. Pappus usually reddish or brownish

25

20a. Ligules ca 1 cm long

21

b. Ligules 1.5-2.5 cm long

22

21a. Leaves linear-elliplic or obovate-oblong, or lanceolate, 2-3-toothed

13. Aster molliusculus

b. Leaves oblanceolate-spathulate or linear, entire

14. Aster neoelegans

22a. Heads ca 1.5 cm across

23

b. Heads ca 2.0 cm across

24

23a. Achenes silky hairy; pappus 1.5 mm long

4. Aster asteroides

b. Achenes densely white pubescent; pappus ca 5 mm long

19. Aster stracheyi

24a. Leaves cordate at base; petioles 5-8 cm long

12. Aster laka

b. Leaves rounded or attenuate at base; petioles 1.0-4.5 cm long

10. Aster himalaicus

25a. Herbs up to ca 35 cm high

26

b. Herbs up to ca 100 cm high

27

26a. Petioles 2.5-5.0 cm long; involucral bracts glandular and pilose; achenes ca 1.0 cm long

9. Aster heliopsis

b. Petioles 5-8 cm long,; involucral bracts sparsely white villous; achenes ca 3 mm long

12. Aster laka

27a. Leaves half amplexicaul at base

21. Aster tricephalus

b. Leaves attenuate at base

28

28a. Strigose pubescent herbs; ray florets ca 16

3. Aster altaicus

b. Sparsely or moderately pilose herbs; ray florets 30-60

5. Aster barbellatus

List of Lower Taxa