F LORA & FAUNA
GEORGIA ASTER
Symphyotrichum georgianum
Georgia aster( Symphyotrichum georgianum) is a true beauty that remains rare and vulnerable due to continued habitat loss. In 2015, the Georgia Native Plant Society named it their Plant of the Year, which seems to have spurred this plant’ s availability in native nurseries. Bloom size is typically two inches wide— unusually large for an aster— and supports half a dozen groundnesting native specialist bees. Its striking purple flowers with yellow centers make a dramatic late-season display, offering vital nectar when many other blooms have faded.
SERVICEBERRY
Amelanchier arborea
One of our prettier understory native trees is serviceberry( Amelanchier arborea), growing only fifteen to twenty-five feet tall. It is the host plant for the red-spotted purple( Limenitis arthemis) and grows readily in coastal South Carolina. The berries are lovely but seldom last until fall, as they are quickly devoured by birds such as Baltimore orioles, bluebirds, towhees, and hairy woodpeckers. Mammals such as chipmunks, foxes, and deer also enjoy them. The red-spotted purple is known to mimic the poisonous pipevine swallowtail to avoid predators.
ROOTS 2025 • 87