Symphyotrichum oblongifolium
Symphyotrichum oblongifolium
Safety & Hazards
None known
Cultivation Details
The plant grows in the wild in well-drained moist to dry soils in full sun to partial shade[1]. Prefers neutral to slightly acidic soils[1]. Dit does well in both sandy and clay soils, and generally tolerates poor soils[2]. Established plants are drought tolerant[2]. The rigid stems give off a balsam-like scent when crushed[1]. The rigid, toothless, oblong, blue-green leaves are fragrant when crushed[2]. The plant can spread freely by means of stolons and may need regular thinning in order to control its spread[1].
Propagation
Seed - surface sow in spring in a cold frame. Do not allow the compost to become dry. Pre-chilling the seed for two weeks can improve germination rates[3]. Germination usually takes place within 2 weeks at 20°c[3]. When large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and plant them out in the summer. Division in spring or autumn[4]. Very easy, larger divisions can be planted straight into their permanent positions whist smaller clumps are best potted up and kept in a cold frame until they are growing away well. Basal cuttings in late spring. Harvest the shoots when they are about 10 - 15cm long with plenty of underground stem. Pot them up into individual pots and keep them in light shade in a cold frame or greenhouse until they are rooting well. Plant them out in the summer. Cite as: Temperate Plants Database, Ken Fern. temperate.theferns.info. 2026-02-21. <temperate.theferns.info/plant/Symphyotrichum+oblongifolium>
Pollinators
Bees, Lepidoptera
References
- [1]Plants Database — United States Department of Agriculture · http://plants.usda.gov/java/factSheet ↩︎An online database with an excellent collection of fact sheets about native N. American plants.
- [2]KemperCentreForHomeGardeningPlantFinder — Missouri Botanical Garden · http://www.mobot.org/gardeninghelp/plantfinder/ ↩︎Basic cultivation details, plant uses, habitat etc for several thousand species of plants, mainly from the temperate zone.
- [3]Growing from Seed. Volume 2. — Rice. G. (Editor) · Thompson and Morgan. · 1988 · ISBN - ↩︎Very readable magazine with lots of information on propagation. An interesting article on Ensete ventricosum.
- [4]The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. — Huxley. A. · MacMillan Press · 1992 · ISBN 0-333-47494-5 ↩︎Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.
- [5]Flora of N. America — http://flora.huh.harvard.edu/fna/ ↩︎An on-line version of the flora with an excellent description of the plant including a brief mention of plant uses.