Whorled Wood-aster
Oclemena acuminata
Found in spruce-fir forests, northern hardwood forests, mountain seepages and streambanks, other cool, moist situations. FloraQuest, phone app (app page) What its natural habitat tells you
Native to Virginia. How scores work Is it native here?
Profile 100%
- Height
- 1–2 feet
- Spread
- 1–2 feet
- Light
- Deep shade, Full sun, Partial shade
- Soil moisture
- Usually moist
Space about 1.5 ft apart from its recorded spread, about 44 per 100 sq ft. Enter your bed size for a count
Will it fit your yard?
At a glance
- Life cycle
- Perennial
- Bloom
- July to September
Not yet recorded · Leaves
Recorded in 32 Virginia counties.
Natural habitats
Places it grows wild. Not a planting requirement. Each habitat page lists the plants and wildlife also found there.
Streams, rivers and their banks
Also found with this plant
Wildlife whose habitat models include habitats this plant grows in, in Virginia. Shared habitat, not food. 108 animals.
- American KestrelFalco sparverius
- Blue-gray GnatcatcherPolioptila caerulea
- Blue-headed VireoVireo solitarius
- Cooper's HawkAccipiter cooperii
- Eastern BluebirdSialia sialis
- European StarlingSturnus vulgaris
- Evening GrosbeakCoccothraustes vespertinus
- Fox SparrowPasserella iliaca
- Hermit ThrushCatharus guttatus
- Hooded WarblerWilsonia citrina
- Kentucky WarblerOporornis formosus
- Least FlycatcherEmpidonax minimus
- Long-eared OwlAsio otus
- Mourning DoveZenaida macroura
- Northern CardinalCardinalis cardinalis
- Orange-crowned WarblerVermivora celata
- Red-tailed HawkButeo jamaicensis
- Rose-breasted GrosbeakPheucticus ludovicianus
- Ruby-crowned KingletRegulus calendula
- Ruby-throated HummingbirdArchilochus colubris
- Scarlet TanagerPiranga olivacea
- Sharp-shinned HawkAccipiter striatus
- Spotted SandpiperActitis macularius
- Tufted TitmouseBaeolophus bicolor
Who uses this plant?
2CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including VA
Genus host records with ranges including VA · Oclemena
- Eupithecia miserulataCommon Eupithacia, Common Pug
- Phyciodes tharosPearl Crescent, Crescentspot
54BeesSoutheastern regional records
Southeastern regional records · Aster
Individual names are not available yet.
Noori, Seltmann & Orr 2026, A curated and integrated dataset for exploring global bee-plant interactions (GloBI), Zenodo, CC BY 4.0
25Specialist beesPollen specialists
Pollen specialists · Aster
- Andrena asteris
- Andrena braccata
- Andrena chromotricha
- Andrena fulvipennis
- Andrena hirticincta
- Andrena nubecula
- Andrena placata
- Andrena simplex
- Ashmeadiella bucconis
- Colletes americanus
Show all 25
- Colletes compactus
- Colletes speculiferus
- Dianthidium curvatum
- Melissodes denticulatus
- Melissodes dentiventris
- Melissodes druriellus
- Melissodes illatus
- Melissodes niveus
- Melissodes subillatus
- Melissodes trinodis
- Melissodes wheeleri
- Paranthidium jugatorium
- Perdita octomaculata
- Protandrena citripes
- Protandrena compositarum
3BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim
Recorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim · Aster
- Alectoris chukarChukar
- Bonasa umbellusRuffed Grouse
- Centrocercus urophasianusGreater Sage-Grouse
Direct food only: birds recorded eating this genus across North America. Caterpillars on host plants also feed nesting birds. NC Native Plant Society: butterfly gardening
No records yet · Ants · Beetles · Flies · Adult butterflies / moths · Other wasps · Other insects
Plant details
- Family
- Asteraceae
- Hardiness
- Zones 4a–7b
- Soil pH
- Acidic
- Flower color
- Yellow, pink, red or white
Safety has not been reviewed for this plant; check toxicity and thorns before planting.
Growing sources and scope
- Bloom · “July to September” · FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Southeastern Flora Team), phone app (app page) · Carolinas and Georgia
- Flower color · “Yellow, pink, red or white” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center differs)
- Hardiness · “Zones 4a–7b” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Height · “1–2 feet” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center differs)
- Life cycle · “Perennial” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Light · “Deep shade (less than 2 hours to no direct sunlight); Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day); Partial shade (direct sunlight only part of the day, 2-6 hours)” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center differs)
- Soil · “Moist” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center differs)
- Soil pH · “Acidic” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
- Spread · “1–2 feet” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
Also known as
Aster acuminatus; Nodding Wood Aster; Whorled Wood Aster; aster
Conservation status
| Virginia rank | S5 |
|---|---|
| Global rank | G5 |
| VA status | Not verified |
| Federal status | Not verified |
Will it fit your yard?
Check this plant against your county, sun and soil moisture. Conditions are checked in your browser.
Sources
- Digital Atlas of the Virginia Flora
- USDA PLANTS
- Vascular Plants of North Carolina (NC Natural Heritage Program)
- FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Weakley), phone app (app page)
- NatureServe Explorer
- Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)
- Noori, Seltmann & Orr 2026, A curated and integrated dataset for exploring global bee-plant interactions (GloBI), Zenodo, CC BY 4.0
- Smith, Bachelder, Russell, Morales, Mosher & Seltmann 2024, Bee-Specialization-Modeling v0.6.1 (specialist host table compiled from J. Fowler's pollen specialist bee lists), Zenodo, CC BY 4.0
- Hurlbert, Olsen, Sawyer & Winner 2021, Avian Diet Database, Scientific Data 8: 260 (CC0)
- Narango, Tallamy & Shropshire 2020, Few keystone plant genera support the majority of Lepidoptera species, Nature Communications