Maryland Golden Aster
Chrysopsis mariana
Butter-yellow flowers blanket silvery foliage August through October. Built for dry, sandy sites that usually go quiet in fall.
Typically 1 pint–1 gal · $9–$30 · final price at pickup
- Thu, Aug 138 AM – 4 PM
- Fri, Aug 148 AM – 4 PM
- Sat, Aug 158 AM – 2 PM
Saturated golden fall color for the driest sunny spots where nothing else delivers bloom in September and October.
Maryland golden aster is a fall-blooming sunshine machine for dry, sandy soils. The flowers are a saturated butter-yellow, smaller than sunflowers but covering the plant densely in August through October, creating a warm golden mass at exactly the time when most dry-site gardens go quiet. The foliage is woolly and silver-green, giving it attractive texture all season before the bloom explosion. Native to dry, open habitats -- sandy roadsides, pine barrens, dry meadows -- this is the plant for sites where drainage is sharp and summer heat is intense. A genuinely overlooked native that outperforms many popular dry-site choices while providing excellent late-season pollinator value. Cut flower potential is real, though the stems are shorter than ideal.
A nursery-grown plant, ready for the ground.
Healthy, container-grown maryland golden aster propagated on-site at Hill House from regional genetics. Includes a one-page care card. We make every effort to supply plants as listed; occasionally we substitute a similar species of equal value.
- Sun
- Full sun
- Water
- Dry
- Mature size
- 1–2 ft · 12–18 in wide
- Bloom time
- August–October
- Bloom color
- Yellow
- USDA zones
- 4–9
- Family
- Asteraceae
- Native range
- Eastern United States from New York south to Florida and west to Texas, primarily in dry, sandy, open habitats
Care notes for maryland golden aster.
Full sun in dry to very dry, well-drained soil. Thrives in sandy and gravelly conditions. Does not tolerate wet feet. Cut back in early spring. Self-seeds lightly in favorable conditions. No supplemental water needed once established.
Pairs well with these.
Same light, same soil, same wildlife. Janet's picks to plant alongside maryland golden aster.
Or skip the guesswork.
Curated packages bundle complementary species for an instant habitat. One reservation, one pickup day, a printed layout map.
Short on Space Package
For gardeners who have an abundance of passion but are short on space, this package features tidy, upright, clump-forming natives that behave and function well in small spaces.
Shade Bed Package
Ferns, sedges, and woodland natives that thrive under existing trees.
Birder’s Paradise Package
For the avid bird watchers and budding ornithologists in our community, the Birder’s Paradise Package consists of species that Hill House Nursery staff and longtime native plant advocates such as Doug Tallamy consider ‘premier bird garden plants’.