VALUE AND USE
SPECIES: Aster laevis | Smooth Aster 



WOOD PRODUCTS VALUE : 
NO-ENTRY


IMPORTANCE TO LIVESTOCK AND WILDLIFE : 
White-tailed deer will graze smooth aster, selecting it over other
available forbs [14].


PALATABILITY : 
Smooth aster is palatable to white-tailed deer and livestock [14,47].
It is likely that it is palatable to other species as well, but
documentation is not available.


NUTRITIONAL VALUE : 
Smooth aster has high nutritional value, decreasing with maturation.
Nutritional values for aerial portions are as follows [7]:

              digestible protein (%)  cellulose (%)  digestibility(%)

leaf stage       11.6                    27.2           77.1
heading           5.9                    28.8           55.2
seed ripening     5.2                    31.2           61.8


COVER VALUE : 
NO-ENTRY


VALUE FOR REHABILITATION OF DISTURBED SITES : 
Direct seeding of smooth aster was successful in establishing plants
along highway margins for prairie restoration [32].  Smooth aster is
recommended in seedings and plantings for rehabilitation or restoration
of native mixed-grass and tallgrass prairies [31,32,49].


OTHER USES AND VALUES : 
NO-ENTRY


MANAGEMENT CONSIDERATIONS : 
In a study of prairie regeneration in which herbicides were applied to
control quackgrass (Agropyron repens), smooth aster failed to establish
in plantings treated with either glyphosate or dichlobenil [49].
Picloram, tebuthiuron, and hexazinone all suppressed growth of smooth
aster, either alone or in combination.  Applied alone, 2,4,D-E did not
suppress smooth aster growth [31].

Grazing by deer does not appear to affect survival of established plants
or seedlings, as long as only the stem tips are removed.  Most plants
damaged by deer responded with vigorous growth the following season
[14].  Weaver and Hansen [47] classify smooth aster as a decreaser under
grazing.

Plants grown under nursery conditions had excellent rates of survival
when planted in the field.  Nursery stock was planted at a rate of 3.5
ounces of seed per 100 square feet (11 gm/sq m), and resulted in a
harvest of 9.5 pounds of seed per 100 square feet (0.5 kg/sq m) [46].

Related categories for Species: Aster laevis | Smooth Aster