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White wood-aster, Eurybia divaricata

White wood-aster, Eurybia divaricata, is a great perennial for shady areas of the garden. It blooms at a time when most shade perennials are spent but before the fall asters are putting on their show. Its ease of cultivation, distinctive prostrate habit, and starry charm make this a plant worth trying.

The many small white blooms have relatively few rays. This gives each inflorescence a starry appearance which is especially effective in a shady corner. The disk flowers, comprising the center of the inflorescence, are yellow at first and age to shades of burgundy and brown. The basal foliage is toothed and heart shaped while stem leaves decline in size from the bottom up and may be heart shaped or more lance shaped.

Expect this low-growing aster to form a lax mound of foliage and flowers. Sprawling stems may find support by leaning on their neighbors or make a lovely tangle on the ground. Cardinal-flower, great blue lobelia, and axillary goldenrod are three perennials of similar scale, growing requirements, and bloom time. Plant white wood-aster among these or medium-sized ferns such as northern maidenhair to increase structure and visual interest. White wood-aster can also be useful as a shade-tolerant ground cover. A large patch is not difficult to establish, and once the plants mature they will bloom for weeks and weeks. The heart-shaped basal foliage maintains a presence in the landscape before and after the flowers steal the show.

This species is adapted to shady conditions and performs well in average to moist soil. As with many woodland wildflowers, it will benefit from a well-drained organic soil, but this tolerant plant can thrive in a broad range of soil conditions.

White wood-aster is common in the mountains and piedmont of North Carolina and present, though less common, in the coastal plain. Watch for its flowers in woodlands and along roadsides in late summer and fall.

For a free brochure of the 2008 NC Wildflower of the Year, send a SASE to: NCWFOY 2008, NC Botanical Garden, Box 3375, UNC, Chapel Hill, NC 27599-3375.

(The Wildflower of the Year program is a joint effort between the NC Botanical Garden and the Garden Club of North Carolina, Inc. to promote the use of native plants in the home garden. Each year, a showy native perennial is chosen and seeds are distributed to interested gardeners. Through this program attention is focused on native plant conservation and diversity and the message of "conservation through propagation. ")