Asters Are Good Cut Flowers & Good for Pollinators
Asters are care-free perennial cutting flowers that bloom in mid-summer to fall.
Their delicate little cool blue-purple daisies make a delightful bouquet filler for hot-colored late summer flowers like sunflowers, Tithonia, Alstroemerias, and tall marigolds. While most are a pale purple, two species have many other colors available.
They work very well in the landscape in a perennial border because they’re deer and rabbit resistant.
They’re a very easy to grow plant, spreading to form bigger and bigger clumps over time.
And their classic yellow daisy center attracts many pollinators including native bees (they’re not dangerous!), plus our necessary beneficial insects that keep garden pests in check. See more in the Special info section below.
Since they bloom later in late summer, they’re a good source of nectar and pollen when the other flowers are finishing their season.
There are three species that are most commonly used plants for cutting flowers, two of which have a variety of colors available. And a fourth that has aromatic foliage.
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Aster flowers and plants
Asters are daisy-like with fine petals surrounding a flat yellow center borne on sprays of long stems. Some flowers are semi doubles meaning that they have an extra row of petals.
Most asters are a blue-violet color, but there are many varieties bred to have other colors like pink, white, and almost reds.
Some asters can grow to 5-6 ft’ tall, and some varieties were bred for bedding plants for fall color (and pollinators!). So when you’re shopping for asters, check what their heights are when blooming so you can get good long stems for cutting.
Here are the best asters for cut flowers:
Frikart’s, also called Monch’s aster (Aster X frikartii), is a pale violet aster that blooms earlier than the others, starting in mid-summer, and continuing into fall.
New England aster (A. novae-angilae) flowers are naturally pale violet, but have been bred to have a wider array of colors from white to pinks to almost reds. The native species grows to 6 ft. or more!
New York (or Michaelmas daisies) (A. novi-belgii) include the same colors as above.
Raydon’s Favorite Aromatic Aster (A. oblongifolius) has pale violet flowers and… has fragrant flowers and foliage!
How to grow asters
Water well for the first year, once they’re established, they’ll tolerate drier conditions. Here are the specifics for each type of aster:
Frikart’s/Monch’s aster: Zones 5-9 for this one; full sun, though it will grow, but bloom less, if it gets less than 6 hrs. of sun; grows to 24-36 in. tall x 18-24 in. wide.
New England Aster: Zones 4-8; full sun to part shade; grows 48-72 in.. tall, 24–36 in. wide.
New England and Michaelmas asters: Zones 4-8; full sun to part shade; sizes vary.
Raydon’s Favorite Aromatic Aster: full sun; Zones 4-8; grows to 24-36” tall, 12-24” wide.
Please be aware that the heights for the plant are for the species. Varieties of species may vary, so it be sure to check labels and lant descriptions to get more accurate heights.
Plant in fall or spring, or any time the soil is workable and you have a plant. They need an average soil, not too enriched. Add an organic fertilizer and a little soil amendment in the soil at planting. Maintain soil with a little organic fertilizer and soil amendment as a top dressing in fall to maintain soil health.
Asters have fairly low water needs, so keep them in a drier area of your garden. But the New England asters can tolerate wet soils.
Some growers recommend pinching the plants for a strong display of flowers. But pinching will give you a good display for the garden. It’s done to produce more flowers on the stem, yielding a dome of flowers effect in a garden bed. If you don’t pinch you’ll have an airier appearance, which I find more attractive.
For cut aster flowers longer flower stems are more desirable. But pruning the stems back when they’re less than half their final height will give you more stems overall, but they’ll be shorter stems. Do it only once, and this will delay their bloom. But you may want to try it.
I prefer to let them grow with no pinching so they produce long stems. Each stem is nicely branched which makes asters great cut flowers to mix into bouquets.
For more details about growing asters American Meadows has a nice description (plus plants for sale).
How to harvest aster flowers
Harvest when the petals are open but the anthers are still closed up. Asters will give you a good vase-life of 7-10 days or more, and harvesting before the pollen bearing anthers start to open will give you’re the best vase life. Cut stems at the base. The top end flower may go past its prime first, but you can maintain your arrangement by cutting it off.
Favorite varieties
I like the Frikart/Monch asters for cutting flowers, I like their color. But I sure like the New England and New York varieties too!
For landscaping with asters I’d choose the New England or the New York varieties to use as pollinator and beneficial insect supporters for low-water carefree flowers, as well as for cutting. I plan to develop a meadow garden in our landscape, and I will also use our local native asters! The natives are always best for boosting the pollinators, birds, and your local ecosystem.
Sources for aster plants
First check with your local nursery to see if and when they will get them in. Since they’re late-summer blooming, they’re more likely to be blooming in the nursery trade earlier, in mid-late summer, and be available for sale.
Otherwise, you can buy them online at earlier stages and you may get a better selection to choose from. Here are a few excellent online nurseries to buy from:
Bluestone Perennials: The have a large selection of varieties
High Country Gardens: Thy have a great selection, too, plus they have Raydon’s Favorite Aromatic Aster
American Meadows:They are a great source of wildflower seeds, grass seeds, perennial plants, and more
Special info: why aster flowers are so important for pollinators
As I mentioned above, the flowers are food to many pollinators and beneficial insects. That includes the Monarch butterfly. In late summer the Monarchs start their journey south and they need flowers for energy. Late blooming flowers are essential for them to make the journey.
Asters provide the perfect landing pad for butterflies to sip nectar for energy. The New York and New England native asters have long been a valuable source for butterflies and moths in late summer to fall. They’re essential for the Monarch’s migration. So you can help them by growing these easy flowers in your garden!
To add to all that, they’re good butterfly and moth host plants where their caterpillars fatten up on the foliage in spring (so don’t worry if you see holes).
Flowers to go with asters:
Sunflowers
Big, long-stemmed sunflowers, especially the darker varieties, go well with asters.
Tithonia
This late summer bloomer is a perfect foil for the cooler colors of asters.
African Marigold
These long-stemmed rich colored marigolds are good cut flowers that bloom into late fall.
Perennial Sunflower
These big yellow flowers mix beautifully with annual sunflowers and asters in fall.
Transplanting Perennials
How I successfully transplanted my established perennials, even at the worst time.
How to Feed Perennials
Caring for soil is simple. You want to let your soil biology thrive. Learn how.