Aster tardiflorus and its forms. 
MERRITT LYNDON FERNALD. 
Probably no New England Aster has caused more confusion 
and has been less understood than Aster tardifiorus L, The 
plant was described by Linnaeus in 1 763 from garden speci- 
Mens introduced from northeastern America. These plants 
were low and weak, and grew in the Upsala garden for eight- 
*n years before flowering, and then blossomed late in the 
season. Linnaeus described it as a smooth plant two feet 
high, with few axillary divaricate branches: the larger leaves 
spatulate-lanceolate, semi-amplexicaul, and serrate in the mid- 
dle; the others decurrent at the base: flowers as in A. Nor7- 
Belgii ; the inner scales of the imbricated involucre longer 
than the outer. 
In 1783 Lamarck described A. patulus, a plant brought to 
the Paris garden from northeastern America. Lamarck’s 
plant was low and weak, two or three feet high, somewhat 
| State 
branching: the leaves smooth, ovate-lanceolate, sharply ser- 
ite, and a little narrowed at the base. From that time ona 
dumber of Species were described from garden plants and sub. 
“quently referred either to A. tardiflorus or to A. patulus. 
“ribed from garden specimens which had not been identified 
native plants. Instead of using the Linnaean descrip- 
of A. tardiflorus, however, they followed Nees von Esen- 
ck, whose plant is a form of A. Novi-Belgii L., adding ina 
a i i i is A. pat- 
ulus es according to Lindley, the Linnaean plant is A. p 
- They followed the description of Lamarck and adde 
Me note that “‘the cultivated plant has much the habit of A. 
are cordate.” 
us, etc. the leaves 
» except that none of the y had a defi- 
rs are given which show that the 
| Nte Cone ‘ 2 
| Aception of the species. 
tia pis “Studies of Aster and Solidago in the older wey 
EuDy, Gray says in discussing the Linnaean types. ; 
1 
Proc, Amer. Acad. 17: 167. 
[275] 
