White Fringe Tree vs Hairy Golden Aster - TreeTime.ca

White Fringe Tree vs Hairy Golden Aster

Heterotheca villosa

Chionanthus virginicus

NOT AVAILABLE THIS SEASON - MIGHT RETURN

NOT AVAILABLE THIS SEASON - MIGHT RETURN

Hairy Golden Aster
White Fringe Tree

Hairy Golden Aster is a native perennial wildflower known for its clusters of bright yellow, daisy-like blooms. They bloom from mid-summer into fall, providing late-season colour and a valuable nectar source for pollinators, including a variety of bee species.

Flowers mature into fluffy seed heads and can self-seed readily. Removing spent blooms helps manage their spread, but some people will choose to leave a few seed heads to provide food for birds. Hairy Golden Aster grow in bushy clumps, tolerates poor sandy soils, and once established, are among the most drought-tolerant wildflowers. They are well-suited for pollinator gardens, restoration, naturalization, and xeriscaping projects.

White Fringe Tree is known for its fringe-like white flowers. It can either grow as a small tree or a large multistemmed shrub. The White Fringe Tree has separate male and female plants. Both male and female flowers have white fringe-like petals, but the male flowers are longer and showier. The female flowers give way to clusters of dark blue to black berries. These berries are not edible for humans but attract birds and other wildlife.

The White Fringe Tree is tolerant of clay soils, saline soils, and air pollution but does not do well in prolonged dry conditions.

Hairy Golden Aster Quick Facts

White Fringe Tree Quick Facts

Zone: 3a
Zone: 3a
Height: 0.5 m (1.5 ft)
Height: 5 m (15 ft)
Spread: 0.5 m (1.5 ft)
Spread: 5 m (15 ft)
Light: full sun
Light: partial shade, full sun
Moisture: dry, normal
Moisture: normal, wet
Growth rate: fast
Growth rate: slow
Life span: short
Life span: medium
Growth form: upright, clump-forming
Spreading: seeds - high, rhizomes - medium
Suckering: medium
Maintenance: medium


Flowers: bright yellow, daisy-like
Flowers: fragrant, white clusters
Bloom time: mid summer to early fall
Berries: blue to black
Hybrid: no
Hybrid: no
Catkins: no
Catkins: no


Native to: AB, BC, SK, MB, ON
Other Names: hairy false golden aster, hairy false goldenaster, hairy goldenaster
Other Names: american fringe tree, american fringetree, fringe tree, fringetree, north american fringe tree, white fringetree