Many scientific name changes have been made in the Aster Family lately and there are a number of places you can go to refresh your memory on the changes to asters and goldenrods. Here are some websites where you can read up on them:
A list of name changes in Newcomb’s Wildflower Guide can be found on the sidebar of this blog.
This is a website of Asters and Goldenrods of New England:
http://www.nttlphoto.com/botany/asters-goldenrods/a&g_main.htm
Here is a list of aster synonyms from Humboldt University:
http://www.humboldt.edu/herbarium/Aster Synonyms.doc
This is a website describing John Semple’s taxonomy of the asters and goldenrods:
http://www.jcsemple.uwaterloo.ca/asters.htm
This is the aster family treatment in the flora of North America:
http://www.efloras.org/florataxon.aspx?flora_id=1&taxon_id=10074
Time to go in the field and test your memory!
Showy aster, Eurybia spectabilis, on Long Island. Photo Steve Young