5.2 Perennials

PERENNIALS
Aster novae-angliae L.
New England aster, aster de la Nouvelle Angleterre
per. -50° to -29° C Aug-Oct 90-150 cm N(P)
Value for honey: N sugar concentration of 25% 94 (fairly dilute); despite a thin N, it is
very attractive to honeybees and there is often more than one foraging bee per flower at
any one time; greedily sought-after especially when air temperatures are coo1 94; when
collecting N, honeybees and native bees may show a peculiar behaviour, as if
intoxicated 72; see Aster.
Honey: see Aster.
Notes: a common wild plant from Que. to Alta., and is also commonly cultivated;
requires a moist site; damp thickets, shores, meadows etc., sw. Que. to s. Alta., S. to
centr. Me., s. N.E. and beyond Can. limits; frequently cultivated and also escaped from
cultivation 23 .
Aster novi-belgii L.
New York aster, aster de la Nouvelle Belgique
per. -50° to -29° C Sep-Oct 90-150 cm N(P) 36
Value for honey: see Aster.
Honey: see Aster.
Notes: many cvs. available which make excellent omamentals; moist site; native to
many coastal sites from Nfld. and S.; damp thickets, meadows, shores etc., mostly
within 160 km of the sea from Nfld. to s. Que. and S. to N.S., s. N.E. and beyond Can.
limits 23 .
Aster puniceus L.
swamp aster
per. -37° to -29° C Sep 120-240 cm N(P)
Value for honey and pollen: an important N and P source in the Maritimes, Que., and
Ont. 72 ; see Aster.
Honey: see Aster.
Notes: due to its extreme height, this aster may be best in a "wild" garden; prefers a
moist to swampy site; a var. of this found in swamps and damp thickets in Nfld., s.
Man., N.S., N.E. Thunder Bay Distr. Ont., Gasped Co. Que., Lab. to Mackenz. Distr.
etc. 23 .
Astralagus cicer L. 51
cicer milkvetch, mountain chick pea, astragale pois chiche
per. N(P?)
Value for honey: attractive to honeybees, but specific value is unknown 54 ; A. sinicus
L. 51 , Chinese milkvetch, yields 30 kg/colony/season 72 .
Notes: a legume that may be useful in irrigated and dryland areas as a soil improver or
forage crop; not commonly cultivated in N. America.
Aubrieta deltoidea (L.) DC.
purple rock cress
per. -29° to -23° C late Apr-Jun 8-15 cm NP
Value for honey: yields N freely and is one of the earliest per. to bloom 35 ; shear off
stalks after flowering to encourage second fall bloom.
Notes: does well in parts of B.C.; less easily grown in e. Canada; sun or part shade.
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