Another genus of plants previously known as Aster. From the plants we grow, flowers are lilac-purple to white, floriferous. Leaves are attractively shaped. They tend to be rhizomatous and some suitable for a more shady position, unlike many of the traditional asters.
Irrespective of the intricacies of taxonomy, all species formerly lumped together as aster, are of immense value to pollinating insects, especially butterflies, bumblebees, honeybees and hoverflies, particularly in the late summer to autumn garden.