Callistephus chinensis
Summer Aster
Common names: Garden Aster, Chinese Aster
At a glance
- Light
- Full sun
- Pot size
- from 10 l
- Lifespan
- Annual
- Hardiness
- Cold damage below −2 °C
- Water need
- Medium
Photo: CC BY-SA 3.0 · Source
This description was machine-translated.
Description
The Summer Aster is a classic late‑summer and autumn cut‑flower, blooming from August to October in almost all colors except pure yellow. With filled, half‑filled, and simple flower forms, this annual plant produces long‑lasting bouquets. Bees especially favor the simple‑flowering varieties.
Care instructions
Sow the Summer Aster in March or April directly into a sunny spot with nutrient‑rich, well‑drained soil. Do not plant it in the same location every year to avoid root‑rot; practice crop rotation. Water from below and keep the foliage dry. Harvest the flowers for the vase when they are just opening.
The care notes were machine-translated from German.
Garden year
SowingMar–May
HarvestAug–Oct
Germination
- Soil temperature
- from 12 °C, ideally 20 °C
- Days to sprout
- 7 to 14 days
- Light
- Sprouts in light or dark
- Sowing depth
- 0.5 cm
- How to start
- Start indoors, then plant out
Soil & site
Soil pH
Soil type
sandy, loamy, humus-rich, well-drained, nutrient-rich
Give the China aster a loose, humus-rich and nutrient-rich soil with good drainage. Sandy-loamy mixtures are ideal; avoid heavy and waterlogged soils. Change the site every year to prevent soil-borne aster wilt (Fusarium).
Feeding
Medium feeder
Months
Apr–Aug
In spring before planting out, work mature compost shallowly into the soil. With a well-prepared bed that is often enough as basic feeding; without compost you can rake horn shavings in shallowly when planting. From the start of growth to flowering (June to August), top up the supply with nettle or horsetail feed. Avoid freshly, heavily fertilised areas, because too much nitrogen encourages leaf mass at the expense of flowers.
Overwintering
The China aster is annual and dies back completely after the first hard frost. It cannot be overwintered. Let a few faded flower heads ripen, harvest the seeds before the frost, dry them further in an airy place and store them dry and cool; from March raise them indoors, or sow directly in the bed after the Ice Saints.
Propagation
Methods
- From seed
The China aster is an annual plant and is propagated exclusively by sowing. You have two routes: raising indoors or sowing directly in the bed.
Raising indoors (from mid-March to early April): Sow the seeds thinly on moist, low-nutrient seed compost and cover them with a thin layer of compost (about 0.5 cm). The information on whether germination needs light is inconsistent; with a thin covering you are right in any case. Keep the compost evenly moist and place the tray somewhere bright at 15 to 20 °C. Germination follows after about 7 to 14 days. As soon as the seedlings show the second pair of true leaves (about 5 cm tall), prick them out into individual pots. After the Ice Saints (mid-May), plant them out in the bed 25 to 30 cm apart, having hardened them off outdoors for 1 to 2 weeks beforehand.
Direct sowing (from mid-May): Sow directly at the final site once night frosts no longer threaten and the nights stay reliably above 10 °C. This route has one advantage: directly sown plants tend to contribute less to aster wilt, since no transplanting stresses them further. Draw the seeds shallowly into drills, cover them thinly with soil and keep the soil moist until germination (about 2 to 3 weeks).
Preventing wilt: Aster wilt is the most common disease. Do not plant China asters in the same place for several years in a row. Changing the site every year guards against the wilt pathogen that survives in the soil. Remove affected plants immediately.
Companion planting
Companion planting is partly traditional gardening lore. Where the reason is known, it is given.
Some of these explanations were machine-translated.
For your garden
Grow Summer Aster yourself
Gartenkern tells you when frost is coming, when to sow and when to harvest, for your location.
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