Appalachian blazing star is a native herbaceous perennial plant in the Asteraceae (daisy) family. It is found in the central and southeastern United States in meadows and prairies. Plant it in full sun to partial shade in medium to dry soils with good drainage. The multiple small disc flowers appear in heads arranged on an unbranched stem and bloom mid-summer into fall. It prefers sandy to rocky loams that are well-drained in full sun. It is drought and poor soils tolerant and can be used in the back of the border of native pollinator gardens, cottage or rock gardens and they attract many pollinators. This plant was selected as the 1998 NC Wildflower of the Year , a program managed by the North Carolina Botanical Garden with some financial support from the Garden Club of North Carolina. More information on Liatris .
Curated pairwise relationships between this plant and others in the library — who feeds
whom, who competes, who confuses the pests. Green reads as a good pairing, red as one to avoid.
No curated interactions recorded for this species yet.
Also noted by NC State
Related species the NC State Plant Toolbox flags for this plant — look-alikes to tell
apart, and plants that play a similar role in a planting. Ones we carry in the library are linked.
Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day) | Partial Shade (Direct sunlight only part of the day, 2-6 hours)
Soil texture
Loam (Silt); Sand; Shallow Rocky
Soil pH
Acid (<6.0); Neutral (6.0-8.0)
Soil drainage
Good Drainage | Occasionally Dry | Very Dry
Available space
12 inches-3 feet
NC region
Coastal; Mountains; Piedmont
Mature size
Height: 2 ft. 0 in. - 6 ft. 0 in. | Width: 1 ft. 0 in. - 2 ft. 0 in.
Growth rate
Medium
Maintenance
Low
Canopy layer
4 - Herbaceous (3-15 ft)
Form & Appearance
Habit / form
Clumping; Erect
Texture
Medium
Leaf color
Green
Leaf type
Simple
Leaf arrangement
Alternate
Leaf shape
Linear; Oblanceolate
Leaf margin
Entire
Leaf feel
Smooth
Leaf size
> 6 inches long, < 1 inch wide
Hairs present
Yes
Leaf detail
The lower green leaves are narrow oblanceolate and up to 11 inches long and .5 inches wide. They become much smaller and oblanceolate to linear as they go alternately up the stem. They are sessile and smooth, hairy or scaly with a single midrib.
Flower color
Pink; Purple/Lavender
Flower value
Showy
Flower form
Head; Spike
Flower shape
Tubular
Flower size
< 1 inch
Flower detail
Multiple small disc flowers in button-like heads of pinkish-purple flowers. Individual tubular flowers have 5 petals and long stamens. The heads are either sessile or have short thick stems. The bracts are scale-like and green to tinged purple. Blooms July to October.
Bloom time
Fall; Summer
Fruit color
Cream/Tan
Fruit type
Achene
Fruit size
< 1 inch long, < 1 inch wide
Fruit detail
Tan achene with barbed hairs
Stem color
Green; Purple/Lavender
Stem detail
The stems are ridged with short hairs and unbranched. They are green to purple-tinged near the top.
Wildlife & Ecology
Native status
Native
Origin
Central and southeastern U.S.A.
Distribution
AL, GA, IL, IN, KY, LA, MS, MO, NC, SC, TN, TX, WV
Wildlife value
Attacts pollinators to the flowers
Attracts
Bees; Butterflies; Hummingbirds; Songbirds
Play value
Attracts Pollinators; Wildlife Food Source
Food & Medicine
Harvest time
Fall
Fruit type
Achene
Landscape Use
Landscape location
Naturalized Area
Landscape theme
Butterfly Garden; Cottage Garden; Cutting Garden; Drought Tolerant Garden; English Garden; Native Garden; Pollinator Garden; Rock Garden
Design feature
Border; Small groups
Garden tags
#native perennial #NC native #NC Wildflower of the Year #nectar plant mid-summer #purple flowers #food source fall #nectar plant fall #corm #pollinator plant #showy flowers #dry soils tolerant #drought tolerant #butterfly friendly #food source nectar #food source summer #NC Native Pollinator Plant #poor soil tolerant #moth friendly