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Search for native plants by scientific name, common name or family. If you are not sure what you are looking for, try the Combination Search or our Recommended Species lists.

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Liatris tenuifolia (Shortleaf blazing star)
Stuart, Will

Liatris tenuifolia

Liatris tenuifolia Nutt.

Shortleaf Blazing Star, Slender Blazing Star, Shortleaf Gayfeather, Shortleaf Liatris, Fineleaf Blazing Star, Fineleaf Gayfeather, Fineleaf Liatris

Asteraceae (Aster Family)

Synonym(s):

USDA Symbol: LITE6

USDA Native Status: L48 (N)

The long spikes of tufted, lavender flower heads, which bloom from the top down, may occupy up to 20 in. of the 2-5 ft. flower stalk.

The Fineleaf Blazing Star is a member of the aster family (family Asteraceae), which includes herbs, sometimes shrubs or vines, rarely trees, with simple or compound, alternate or opposite leaves. Flowers small, but organized into larger heads resembling a single, radially symmetrical flower cupped by a ring of green bracts.

 

From the Image Gallery

9 photo(s) available in the Image Gallery

Plant Characteristics

Duration: Perennial
Habit: Herb
Size Notes: Up to about 5 feet tall.
Fruit: Fruit is a cypsela (pl. cypselae). Though technically incorrect, the fruit is often referred to as an achene.

Bloom Information

Bloom Color: Purple
Bloom Time: Aug , Sep , Oct , Nov

Distribution

USA: AL , FL , GA , SC
Native Distribution: Coastal plain from FL to SC
Native Habitat: Dry pinelands or turkey oak woods; dunes; roadsides

Growing Conditions

Light Requirement: Sun
Soil Description: Sandy or gravelly soils.

Value to Beneficial Insects

Special Value to Native Bees

This information was provided by the Pollinator Program at The Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation.

Web Reference

Webref 38 - Flora of North America (2019) Missouri Botanical Garden, St. Louis, MO & Harvard University Herbaria, Cambridge, MA.

Research Literature

Reslit 1676 - Effects of re-introducing fire to a central Florida sandhill community (2004) K. O. Reinhart and E. S. Menges

This information was provided by the Florida WIldflower Foundation.
Search More Titles in Research Literature

Additional resources

USDA: Find Liatris tenuifolia in USDA Plants
FNA: Find Liatris tenuifolia in the Flora of North America (if available)
Google: Search Google for Liatris tenuifolia

Metadata

Record Modified: 2022-12-29
Research By: TWC Staff

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