New England Aster

Aster novae-angliae Violetta

• Position: full sun or partial shade
• Soil: well-cultivated, fertile, moist soil
• Rate of growth: average
• Flowering period: August to October
• Hardiness: fully hardy
  
  A spectacular variety which from late summer through to autumn, bears a prolific display of fine-rayed violet-purple daisies. The needle-fine petals radiate from a central golden crown. A naturally tall plant, it is best grown through twiggy support to prevent unruly growth, providing a regal purple splash of colour to the back of the autumn border when many other perennials have finished flowering. Attractive to bees and butterflies.
  
  
• Garden care: Stake with bamboo canes or brushwood in early spring. Water regularly during dry spells and deadhead to prolong flowering. After flowering cut the flowered stems to the ground and apply a generous mulch of well-rotted garden compost or horse manure around the base of the plant.