Stiff-leaved Aster, Flax-leaf Ankle-aster, Flax-leaf Aster, aster à feuilles de linaires
Ionactis linariifolia (L.) Greene is native to sandy and sometimes clay soils in coastal plain communities or sandy cracks and ledges of acid rocks in stream falls or rapids from southern Québec to New Brunswick south to eastern Texas and Florida (). It is the only species in the genus in eastern North America. Plants are basally herbaceous with stems and leaves eglandular, heads usually in loose corymbiform arrays, and disc florets bisexual and fertile. Semple and Brouillet (2024) illustrated the details of the four series of pappus bristles. The species is diploid (2n=18).
Semple, J.C. and L. Brouillet. 2024. Pappus variation in North American asters. II. Ionactis and Oclemena (Asteraceae: Astereae). Phytoneuron 2024-87: 1-6.
Last revised 8 May 2025 by J.C. Semple
© 2025 J.C. Semple, including all photographs unless otherwise indicated
1-6. Ionactis linariifolia  1. Large plant, North Carolina. 2. Small plant on slope, Semple 11570, Monroe Co., Tennessee. 3-4. Small plants and upper leaves and inflorescence, Semple 10731, Allegheny Co., Virginia. 5. Flowering heads, S 11570. 6. Mature fruit, Semple & Chmielewski 6385, Alcorn Co., Mississippi.Â