Aster Silver Spray
Rather than solid heads of colour, 'Silver Spray' throws out clouds of small daisies on fine branching stems. Each flower is barely 2 cm across, pale lilac washing towards white, with a yellow centre that darkens to russet as it ages, and there are hundreds of them on a mature plant. Symphyotrichum cordifolium has heart-shaped lower leaves, which is where the older name comes from. Flowering is March to May.
The see-through quality of this aster makes it useful in front of heavier planting, where it veils rather than blocks. It works in naturalistic and prairie-style borders, in woodland edges and semi-shade where most asters sulk, and in large informal drifts. The airy sprays are excellent cut, filling out an arrangement the way gypsophila does.
Grow in full sun to part shade in soil that stays reasonably moist but never waterlogged. This species copes with drier and shadier positions than the novi-belgii Michaelmas daisies. Allow 50 cm between plants. Clumps expand steadily and benefit from division every third spring. Staking is rarely needed, as the many fine stems hold each other up.
Grows 1 to 1.2 m tall with a spread of around 0.4 to 0.5 m.
Trimming: Cut stems to ground level in late autumn or leave them standing over winter for the seed heads, then clear them before spring growth. Pinching in early summer is optional and produces a lower, denser cloud of flower.
Deadheading: Impractical on a plant with this many small flowers, and not needed. Shear the whole plant over once the display finishes if the brown heads bother you.
Fertilising: A spring mulch of compost with a light balanced fertiliser is enough. Heavy feeding produces tall soft stems that lean and lose the fine branching habit.
Watering: Water through dry summers to keep the plant in good condition. It handles dryness better than most asters but flowers more freely where the soil holds moisture.
Pest Control: Aphids on new shoots and slug damage in spring are the usual complaints, both minor on an established clump.
Disease Management: Less mildew-prone than the novi-belgii types, though powdery mildew still appears where plants are crowded or dry at the root. Divide congested clumps and water the ground rather than the leaves.
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