Corethrogyne filaginifolia

California Aster is a deciduous perennial. The ultimate size and flower color of California aster are widely variable depending on local conditions, but it generally grows 1-3' tall and equally wide. This ground-hugging, wide spreading, very tough perennial threads its silvery foliage decoratively among other plants. Bright lavender, yellow centered, aster-like flowers give a summer-long season of bloom. May be pruned to 3-4" when season's new growth appears. Adds summer color to the garden and attracts butterflies. Native to California and to Baja California. Gabbs Checkerspot butterfly larvae utilize this species for food and a host of butterflies from skippers to Swallowtails use the nectar. No Historical Uses found. Found in dry, sunny, rocky, grassy, or eroded clayey slopes and sea-bluffs. Communitites located in Coastal scrub, oak woodlands, grasslands Below 8,530 feet.

The genus Lessingia, native to Western North America, is a member of the Asteraceae, or Daisy Family. They are generally low-growing, and may be annuals or perennials depending on the species. The flower color for the genus is either yellow or else in the white-pink-purple range. Some are very localized and rare, such as the San Francisco Lessingia (L. germanorum), while others are more widespread. One of the latter is Lessingia filaginifolia, sometimes called California-Aster. Lessingia filaginifolia can be found in nature from southwestern Oregon all the way down through California to northern Baja California. It is one of the perennial species, with a clumping habit and speading stems. In most forms the stems and leaves have an attractive wooly white coating, and the flowers are in the purple-lavender-pink range, or sometimes white. Our plant at the Ruth Bancroft Garden is the cultivar Lessingia filaginifolia ‘Silver Carpet’, a selection from coastal bluffs in Monterey County, south of San Francisco. It stays very low, growing only a few inches high, but spreads laterally to form a clump up to 4 or 5 feet across (1.2 to 1.5 m). The leaves are up to a little over an inch long (3 cm), and when flattened they are spoon-shaped, but they are normally folded like a taco so that the edges are close together. Rather than being smooth, the margins have small blunt teeth, giving a serrated appearance. Lessingia filaginifolia ‘Silver Carpet’ has a long flowering period during the summer and into the fall, with abundant lavender-pink daisy-type flowers with yellow centers. The flower diameter is ⅞ inch to 1 inch (2.2 to 2.5 cm). This drought-tolerant plant thrives in full sun even in hotter inland conditions, where occasional watering helps to keep it looking good, and it tolerates wind and even some salt spray in coastal areas. It will grow in both sandy and clay soils, and is a fine choice for trailing over rocks or down a slope.

A tough & tolerant California native groundcover that attracts butterflies from far & wide! Lessingia filaginifolia (A.K.A. Corethrogyne filaginifolia, or Aster filaginifolia, or Aplopappus haenkei – this plant has a huge number of names floating around) has violet purple (or occasionally white) flowers in late Spring & forms dense silver mat up to 4’ wide & somewhere between 1-6” tall. Thrives in clay or sand & takes a lot of drought, as well as salt spray. If kept Summer dry, expect the plant to go deciduous, as many of our native plants do.