Aster

Aster (China or Common Aster / CALLISTEPHUS)

Great cutting flowers, Kate uses them the Church where thanks to  their long stems and large flowers they make for wonderful displays. Their longevity in the vase is another factor. The word Aster comes from the Greek meaning star and there are over 180 varieties, so plenty to choose from! The Aster is an annual the ones in the pictures below come from a Chinese daisy with a yellow center but has since been bred into a multitude of colours. Another variety called the Branching China Aster is also a beautiful plant. Wild Asters have much smaller daisy like flowers.

Planting in heavy soil or Sandy loam soil should produce good results.

The Asters pictured above are g

Further Reading http://www.backyardgardener.com/annual/annual11.html