As you’re getting into native plants, you may wonder what the difference is between familiar flowers like daisies, asters, and chrysanthemums. These popular plants are common in nurseries, gardens, and even grocery stores—especially during the fall.
While they share similarities, each belongs to a different plant group, with only asters native to North America. Let’s dig into their differences, origins, and how to select butterfly-friendly species for your garden.
Let’s start with what these three plants have in common.
All three plants are in the Asteraceae family
Daises, asters, and chrysanthemums all belong to the Asteraceae family, one of the largest plant families with over 20,000+ plant species. (The Latin name Asteraceae makes it sound complicated, but it refers to the flower shape. ‘Aster’ comes from the ancient Greek word for star.)
One look at a few plants in Asteraceae, and you quickly see what makes this star-family special.
Meet the Asteraceae family
Some flowers include:
All three plants have florets
Hidden within Asteraceae flowers is a tiny marvel: florets.
A tiny garden in one flower
Take a closer look at a New York Aster, and you’ll see something amazing. Its center isn’t just one flower—it’s made up of hundreds of tiny flowers called ‘florets,’ each one capable of producing a seed. From a distance, they all blend together to look like one big bloom, but up close, it’s like a tiny garden packed into a single flower head.
It’s amazing to realize that a single flower we admire—whether a daisy, chrysanthemum, or aster—is actually made up of dozens, sometimes hundreds, of tiny florets. If you’re like me, you might feel inspired to head into the garden, magnifying glass in hand, to get a closer look.
The floret’s double-edged sword
Here’s a surprising fact that sheds light on why some non-native daisies become invasive: each floret has the potential to produce a seed when pollinated. This means that one bloom in the Asteraceae family isn’t just one seed but dozens, even hundreds.
Let’s do some (scary) math.
Take the Oxeye daisy, native to Europe and Asia, as an example:
- An individual Oxeye daisy flower has 100–200 florets
- A single plant could yield thousands of seeds.
- This prolific seed production (and rhizome-fragment spread) are reasons why Oxeye daisies are classified as invasive in some states.
Now that we understand what connects asters, mums, and daisies, let’s dive into what makes each unique.
Global origins: Daisies, Chrysanthemums, and Asters each have unique native homes
One of the most apparent differences is that these three flowers come from different locations and have different bloom times.
Here are their native ranges and blooming seasons:
Daisies
- Shasta and Ox-eye Daisies are native to Europe and Asia
- Bloom in summer
- Perennials
- Leucanthemum genus (mostly)
- Can be invasive in some US states
Chrysanthemums
- Chrysanthemums (often called ‘Mums’) are native to Asia and Europe
- Bloom in fall
- Many species cannot survive harsh winters
- Chrysanthemum genus
Asters
- There are 100+ asters native to North America
- Some are even host plants for butterflies
- Bloom late summer into fall
- Most are perennials (come back year after year)
- Symphyotrichum genus (mostly)
There are a few other notes on daisies if you’re interested:
Shasta Daisies = Asian + European hybrid
Shasta daisies are actually hybrids of a few European and Asian daisies. A hybrid is a plant whose DNA comes from combining multiple plants.
Meet Shasta Daisy’s dad: Luther Burbank
Luther Burbank, a plant breeder, created over 800 plants through hybridization in his lifetime and created Shasta daisies in 1901. According to the Minnesota State Horticultural Society, “It took him 17 years, and he crossed the oxeye daisy with the English field daisy, the Portuguese field daisy, and the Japanese field daisy to create the Shasta daisy.”
Even though millions of Shasta daises grow in North American gardens, none of the daisy DNA used to make them is native to North America.
Ox-Eye Daisies are invasive in several states
Many states consider Ox-eye daisies invasive. Invasive plants can grow so rapidly and explode their populations so quickly that they crowd out native plant life.
The National Park Service explains the danger of Ox-eye daises (bolding is our own): “Ox-eye daisy is difficult to control or eradicate, since a new plant can regenerate from rhizome fragments. Each flower head can produce up to 200 seeds that spread by wind or animals and remain viable in the soil for several years.”
Yikes. Let’s stay away from this invasive and non-native flower.
What about sterile cultivars?
A few fellow plant enthusiasts have noted that there are sterile daisy cultivars available that do not produce viable seeds. However, as you can see from the National Park Service’s note above, even without seeds, non-native daisies can spread via rhizome fragments.
Otherwise, it’s time to start our love letter for native asters.
Only asters have options native to North America
All these three flowers are widely found in North American gardens, but only asters have species that have grown here for thousands of years—making them a native plant.
Native plants are beneficial for our gardens for lots of reasons, including:
- Fuss-free beauty. It’s a good reminder that native plants plant themselves. Once established, they happily thrive in average weather with just rain.
- Resilience. Native plants have thousands of years of knowledge hidden within their DNA to thrive in our climate, soil, and weather.
- Wildlife support. Native plants are the preferred home and food of our iconic wildlife. Speaking of wildlife…
Native asters are the host plants for many butterflies
New England and New York Asters are host plants to Pearly Crescentspot, Crescentspot, and Silvery Crescentspot butterflies. Without native asters, these butterflies would not exist.
What is a host plant?
A host plant is a specific plant that a bug, butterfly, or caterpillar eats, lives on, or lays its eggs on.
If you’re looking for fall flowers, plant native asters
It’s a true mystery why non-native ‘mums’ have overtaken fall landscaping when we have gorgeous native aster options that are built for North American climates (and come back, year after year.) Let’s change this trend and plant native asters instead of mums.
There are roughly 120 native asters found in North America, in colors ranging from white to pink to purple. Every garden deserves at least three species. Explore our Beginner’s Guide to Native Asters to meet some favorites.
What are good pairings for native asters?
Pair native asters with other native flowers that bloom during the spring and summer, so that your garden always offers food for pollinators. Ideas include:
Native plants for the spring
Native plants for the summer
Want to stick within the Asteraceae family?
As mentioned earlier, hundreds of native flowers include the same beautiful floret centers. Why not plant a native Asteraceae garden? Some favorites include:
And that sums up our guide to the differences between mums, asters, and daises! We hope this guide helped you understand their family tree alongside the benefits of planting native asters. Sadly, the iconic white-and-yellow daises and fall-time favorite chrysanthemums are not native to North America. But we have 100+ species of native aster to plant instead. Our Beginner’s Guide to Native Asters introduces a few species perfect for North American gardens. Happy planting!
Sources
- University of Nebraska-Lincoln. “Classification and Naming of Plants.” Department of Agricultural Leadership, Education and Communication. 2017. https://alec.unl.edu/documents/cde/2017/natural-resources/classification-and-naming-of-plants.pdf.
- Rolnik, A., & Olas, B. (2021). The Plants of the Asteraceae Family as Agents in the Protection of Human Health. International Journal of Molecular Sciences, 22(6). https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms22063009
- National Park Service. “Invasive Oxeye Daisy.” Lassen Volcanic National Park. Accessed July 21, 2024. https://www.nps.gov/lavo/learn/nature/invasive-oxeye-daisy.htm.
- Penn State Extension. “November Birth Flower: Chrysanthemum.” Penn State Extension. Accessed July 21, 2024. https://extension.psu.edu/programs/master-gardener/counties/luzerne/news/november-birth-flower-chrysanthemum.
- Minnesota State Horticultural Society. “Plant Profile: Shasta Daisy.” Northern Gardener. June 18, 2018. https://northerngardener.org/plant-profile-shasta-daisy/.
- Wikipedia. “Chrysanthemum.” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Last modified July 14, 2024. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chrysanthemum.
- Encyclopædia Britannica. “Asteraceae.” Encyclopædia Britannica. Accessed July 21, 2024. https://www.britannica.com/plant/Asteraceae.
- FTD. “Types of Daisies.” FTD Blog. Accessed July 21, 2024. https://www.ftd.com/blog/types-of-daisies.
- Montana State University Extension. “Oxeye Daisy.” Montana State University Extension. Accessed July 21, 2024. (PDF).
