Download Asters in full bloom replace fading color of summer flowers

48 Missouri Ruralist - August 2006
SHOW-ME LIFESTYLE
Asters in full bloom
replace fading color
of summer flowers
By BARBARA FAIRCHILD
Key Points
T
HERE’S a purple lining to the dog
■ Native aster flowers usher in autumn
days of summer. It comes in the
with brilliant blossoms.
form of native asters that begin
■ Aster blooms attract migrating monarch
their autumnal display in late August,
butterflies.
just as summer beauties are starting to
■ The flower had many medicinal uses
fade.
for the Native Americans.
The aster flower regularly makes the
America. While numerous species call
list of “must have” plants for backyard
Missouri their homeland, the best
habitats because its bloom time
known may be the New England
corresponds with the southward
GROW
aster (Aster novae-angliae).
migration of monarch butterflies.
NATIVE!
This stately flower may reach a
This is a win-win situation for the
height of 5 to 8 feet. Look for it
plant and the butterfly. The asters
along roadways and streams, and in
are assured of a steady stream of
pollinators, and the monarchs have an meadows and backyards.
While the New England aster may be
ample supply of nectar to sustain them
the best known of Missouri asters, there
as they wing their way to the South.
In addition to serving as a fueling are many others, including smooth, stiffstop for monarchs, native asters offer leaved, aromatic, sky-blue, southern
sustenance to moths, bees and other prairie, silky and lavender.
butterflies. Wild turkeys eat the seeds
and foliage in the winter, and rabbits Flower power
Today, asters are used for wildlife habbrowse on the leaves.
Asters are indigenous to locales itat and to beautify the landscape. Native
around the world, with more than Americans, however, used them for me200 species of them native to North dicinal purposes. According to Greg
www.salfordmachine.com
THE PURPLE and yellow New England aster is probably the best known of Missouri
asters. Other species include smooth, stiff-leafed, aromatic, sky-blue, southern
prairie, silky and lavender.
Wolf, an Iowa naturalist, the Blackfoot
tribe used asters as an enema for babies
with gas pains or intestinal trouble.
They administered it by blowing powdered aster down a greased eagle wing
bone. The Cheyenne made a tea of dried
aster stems and dropped it into the ear
to relieve earaches. The Iroquois used
a decoction of the roots and leaves to
treat fevers and as a love medicine. The
Cherokee used the roots to treat fevers,
diarrhea and sores. Other uses included
using the smoke of asters to revive an
unconscious person and rubbing a solution made from the leaves onto the
head to relieve headaches.
How to grow asters
If you decide to add native asters to
your landscape, be sure to study their
growth habits. Some like moist soils
and some like dry soils, so match the
plant to your site. Remember that the
New England aster is a sun-loving plant
and can reach great heights, so put it at
the back of borders and either pinch it
back early in the growing season or be
prepared to stake it.
SALFORD.
A WHOLE NEW ANGLE
ON TILLAGE.
To keep native varieties compact,
cut them back by half in early summer.
This maneuver produces a shorter,
bushier plant and a myriad more of the
star-shaped flowers in the fall.
Asters spread quickly, so keep a
spade handy, as they may need to be
divided every year or so. When dividing
them, discard the older section in the
center and replant the outer portions.
Proud display
While native asters make outstanding
cut flowers, they shouldn’t be confused
with the asters often found in floral displays. Florists typically use China aster,
an Asian plant.
Native asters are sometimes called
starwort or frost flowers because they
bloom until frost, often into November.
What is there to not love about our
hardy, American-born asters? They
usher us into autumn with a riot of blossoms and continue their brilliant display until the first frost.
Fairchild is the communications specialist for Grow Native! Call (573) 5224115, or visit www.grownative.org.
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Discs
Plows
Rippers
EWER Missouri residents are showing symptoms of West Nile virus this
year, but that’s no reason to get complacent about prevention.
Human cases of West Nile virus in Missouri peaked in 2002 at 168 cases
in 29 counties. There were seven fatalities that year, according to the national
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. In 2005, 30 cases in 17 counties
and three fatalities were reported.
Human West Nile virus infections in Missouri typically occur by early August
and continue well into fall, says Richard Houseman, assistant professor of entomology at the University of Missouri-Columbia. The vast majority of human
cases go unreported because they produce no symptoms or just mild ones.
Deaths almost exclusively occur in people over 50 years old. Immunity to the
disease is developed after the first exposure.
Despite fewer cases, Houseman says all residents should take precautions
to prevent mosquitoes from breeding and biting. The insects can carry other diseases, such as St. Louis encephalitis and equine encephalitis strains. In severe
cases, encephalitis can cause brain and spinal-cord swelling, coma, and death.
West Nile virus can develop into a form of this disease.
RTS
Cultivators
Hundreds of mosquitoes can develop in a single soup can left to collect rainwater. Containers, such as buckets and tires, with standing water in them are
especially bad because they lack the predators present in a natural ecosystem.
“If mosquitoes are out in a pond, there are fish, insects and other predators
that will feed on them,” Houseman explains.
For prevention in ponds or lakes, Houseman recommends using a thin coat
of mineral or light oil, which will stop mosquito larvae from developing. Oils
should be applied in shallow margins of water where there is emergent vegetation. Over-the-counter chemicals also can be purchased for mosquito larvae
control around the home and farm.