Wild Flowers East of the Rockies 357 



SMALL WHITE ASTER (Aster vimineus) is still 

 another of the tiny, white-flowered asters. It has a 

 tall, branching stem from 2 to 5 feet high; the 

 branches nearly all leave the main stalk in a hori- 

 zontal position. The inflorescence is chiefly on one 

 side of the flowering stems. This species can usually 

 be identified by the reddish tinge to its stems. The 

 leaves are linear or narrowly lanceolate, the larger 

 ones being obscurely serrate. The flowers are tiny, 

 smaller than any of the preceding, but have from 15 

 to 25 narrow white rays. It grows in moist soil from 

 Me. to Minn, and southwards. 



STARVED ASTER (Aster lateriflorus) is a much 

 branched, slightly hairy species, common in thickets 

 and fields from N. S. to 'Ontario and southwards. The 

 leaves are lanceolate and taper to a point at each 

 end; they are rather rough and sharply serrate in the 

 middle. The plant has a ''starved" appearance owing 

 to the rather brownish colored disc florets; the ray 

 florets are usually less in number than most of the 

 other white species. 



DAISY FLEABANE (Erigeron ramosus) is a com- 

 mon aster-like species found blooming in fields from 

 June until October. The stem is rough-hairy and 

 grows 1 or 2 feet tall. The leaves are also slightly 

 hairy, smooth-edged, the upper ones lanceolate, the 

 lower rather spatulate in shape tapering into slender 

 petioles. The small, daisy-like flowers grow in a 

 corymbed cluster at the top of the stem; they are 

 about y 2 inch across, have quite a broad disc of tubu- 

 lar, yellowish florets and very numerous, narrow, ray 

 florets; these rays range from 40 to 80 in number; at 

 night they usually turn upwards so as to partly en- 

 fold the disc. 



