California Aster

This perennial grows to 1 to 3 feet tall and makes a flower bed come alive in late summer through fall, especially when planted with California fuchsia and California goldenrod.

It spreads by rhizomes, likes moist soil but can also go without summer water, and is common on coastal grasslands and marshes. Seeds are favorites of several birds, and fluff is used as nesting material for hummingbirds.

California Aster can be cut to the ground after flowering in the fall and it will reappear late winter. A good habitat plant, native moths and butterflies use this plant as a nectar source and larval host.

Previously named Aster chilensis.

Sun: Full Sun, Part Shade

Water: Dry, Light, Moderate, High

Soil: Clay, Loam

Other: Attracts Butterflies, Attracts Bees, Attracts Birds, Drought Tolerant

Ecological Value	Good nectar source for these butterflies: Orange Sulphur, Mormon Metalmark, Field Crescent, Monarch, Sandhill Skipper, Common Buckeye, skippers, West Coast Lady, Mylitta Crescent.
Container	1-Gal-O, D-16-O, D-40-O, 1-Gal, D-16, D-16S, D-16S-o, D-40, D-40S, D-40S-o, TB2-o, TB4
Ethnobotanical Uses	No Historical Uses found.
Distribution	Native to California and is found only slightly beyond California borders.
Elevation	Between 0 and 4500 feet
Habitat	Dry, sunny, grassy slopes, valley floors, streambanks; & disturbed places like fields; in alluvial formations.