Symphyotrichum novi-belgii: signs of life!

Symphyotrichum novi-belgii, known in English as New York aster, is a flowering perennial native to eastern North America (though not the Toronto area apparently). The flowers are usually mauve, though there are cultivars in purple, dark pink, and white.

I was pleasantly surprised to see a few green leaves showing on this aster; it looks like they remained from last year. (I put my hand behind the plant because otherwise it blended in with the background into an incomprehensible photo. The green leaves are near the bottoms of the stems.)

Garden bloggers' "Bloom" Day

I just found out yesterday about the Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day tradition. Unfortunately, the only outdoor blooms I have seen in Toronto this year are those snowdrops on Woodbine that I've already posted about twice. So here are the closest approximations to blooms in my (landlords') garden today:

Left: rosehips.
Centre, top: Hibiscus syriacus seed pods.
Centre, bottom: New York aster puffs (Symphyotrichum novi-belgii 'Believer').
Right: creepy bellflower seeds (Campanula rapunculoides).

Symphyotrichum novi-belgii 'Believer': flowers

Symphyotrichum novi-belgii, known in English as New York aster, is a flowering perennial native to eastern North America (though not the Toronto area apparently). The flowers are usually mauve, though there are cultivars in purple (like this one, 'Believer'), dark pink, and white.