Eurybia hemisphaerica

Single-stemmed Bog Aster, Southern Prairie Aster

Eurybia hemisphaerica (Alexander) G. L. Nesom is native to dry to mesic, less commonly in moist, sandy-loamy soils, open habitats, open oak-pine or oak-hickory woods, bottomlands, prairies, pastures, roadsides in two disjunct areas east and west of the Mississippi River from southeastern Kansas to eastern Tennessee south to east Texas and Panhandle Florida and southwest Georgia (Brouillet 2006 FNA).  The species is distinguished from E. paludosa but its racemiform array of heads.  The following names are synonyms: Aster hemisphaericus Alexander, A. gattingeri Alexander, A. paludosus Ait. subsp. hemisphaericus (Alexander) Cronquist; A. paludosus var. hemisphaericus (Alexander) Waterfall; A. pedionomus Alexander; A. verutifolius Alexander; Heleastrum hemisphaericum (Alexander) Shinners.

The species is diploid (2n=18) east of the Mississippi River and predominantly tetraploid (2n=36) west of the Mississippi River. Supernumerary chromosome have been reported resulting in confusion of the chromosomal base number with Semple (1982) showed was x=9 not x=5.

Semple, J.C. 1982. Observations on morphology and cytology of Aster hemisphaericus, A. paludosus, and A. chapmanii (Asteraceae) with comments on the chromosomal base number and phylogeny of Aster subg. Aster sect. Heleastrum. Syst. Bot. 7: 60-70.   [Correction of Fig. Legend. Syst. Bot.  7: 501-501 1982.]

Last updated 12 February 2014 by J.C. Semple

© 2014 J.C. Semple, including all photographs unless otherwise indicated