Urban Forestry | Heath Aster

Have you ever wondered what plants are around you as you walk through Toronto's natural areas? In this short video you will be introduced to Heath aster. We'll show you how to know you've found it and why it's important.

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Transcript

Hi! I'm Jaclyn with the City of Toronto's Urban Forestry division.

I'm here in High Park in Toronto, Ontario to share with you some identification tips for Heath aster. Let's take a closer look.

Heath aster is a perennial forb that will grow between 30 and 90 cm in dry soils such as in prairies and savannahs. It enjoys part shade to full sun.

It has clusters of small stalked white flowers that are 9-12 mm across. Each flower has 8 to 20 petals and a yellow disk in the centre.

The clusters are tightly packed creating a shape that resembles a cylindrical spike. The tiny narrow leaf-like parts called bracts are whitish at the base with blunt tips that peel away from the flower.

The stems start off green and turn brown and woody. The stems are often heavily branched in the upper portion of the plant which contributes to its distinctly bushy look.

The leaves are linear in shape and grow up to 5 cm long and they do not have a stalk. There are fine hairs along the leaves and there can be a tiny spine at the tip of the leaf. Heath aster leaves are distinctly smaller in size than other asters. There also may be smaller leaves clustered in the leaf axils.

The fruit is a dry seed with a tuft of whitish hairs. Many pollinators are attracted to this plant including short and long-tongued bees, certain butterflies, moths and beetles, to name only a few.

Now that you know what you're looking for take a closer look next time your find yourself in Toronto's natural areas.

Thanks for watching Nature in the City.