Vascular Plants of North Carolina
Account for Bouquet Aster - Eurybia mirabilis   (Torrey & A. Gray) G.L. Nesom
Members of Asteraceae:
Members of Eurybia with account distribution info or public map:
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Section 6 » Order Asterales » Family Asteraceae
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Author(Torrey & A. Gray) G.L. Nesom
DistributionRestricted to the middle and lower southern Piedmont, north to Mecklenburg, Stanly, and Montgomery counties.

A quite small range; endemic to southern NC and central and western SC.
AbundanceDespite it being a "rare" species, in NC it is uncommon to locally common. Most populations appear to be stable in terms of numbers of plants. The NCNHP has it on its Significantly Rare list.
HabitatMesic, nutrient-rich soils of hardwood slopes, banks of brownwater rivers and streams, bottomlands. It favors circumneutral soils.
PhenologyFlowering and fruiting July-September.
IdentificationThe genus Eurybia has been split from Aster (now Symphyotrichum). Variation among species of each genus requires several steps in a key to split members of the two genera apart (see genus key in Weakley 2018).

Plants grow about 2 feet tall, sometimes to 3 feet, with ovate, short-pointed leaves that have cordate bases on long stalks (stalks are much reduced or absent on upper leaves). Inflorescences tend to be flat-topped or shallowly rounded, rather few-headed, with white rays. Note the recurved tips of the flower bracts! White Wood-aster (E. divaricata) may grow near it, but it has the flower bracts tightly appressed.
Taxonomic CommentsFormerly known as Aster commixtus or A. mirabilis.

Other Common Name(s)Piedmont Aster, Dwarf Aster
State RankS3
Global RankG3
State StatusSR-T
US Status
USACE-agcp
USACE-emp
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B.A. SorrieUnion County, 2011, same data. UnionPhoto_natural
B.A. SorrieUnion County, 2011, Cane Creek County Park. UnionPhoto_natural
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