Symphyotrichum spathulatum var. spathulatum

Western mountain aster

Family: Asteraceae · Type: perennial · Native

Western mountain aster is a California native perennial found in northwestern California, the Cascade Range, Sierra Nevada, Transverse Ranges, San Jacinto Mountains, and Great Basin in mountain meadows at elevations of 1,200 to 2,800 meters. Flowering from June to August, this plant produces delicate white to lavender daisy-like flowers in clusters of 3 to 10 heads. Growing with upright stems 20 to 60 centimeters tall, it forms a robust clump with multiple branching stalks. Its leaves are narrow and lance-shaped, ranging from lanceolate to elliptic, with a distinctive spoon-like shape near the base of the plant. The plant's variable chromosome count suggests significant genetic diversity, contributing to its adaptability across different mountain environments.

Habitat: Meadows

Bloom period: Jun-Aug

Elevation: 1200-2800 m

Bioregions: NW, CaR, SN, TR, SnJt, GB

California counties: San Bernardino, Tulare, El Dorado, Inyo, Plumas, Mono, Modoc, Fresno, Tuolumne, Nevada, Alpine, Butte, Sierra, Siskiyou, Tehama, Placer, Lassen, Madera, Trinity, Amador, Humboldt, Del Norte

Data from The California Species Project — 14,000+ California species with verified data from CNPS, CDFW, USFWS, Jepson eFlora, Cal-IPC, and more.