Smooth Blue

Symphyotrichum laeve. This native aster is named after its smooth leaves and lilac-blue flowers. A perennial hardy in zones 3-9 and tolerates a wide range of growing conditions. It blooms in late summer or early fall, attracting loads of pollinators when not much else is blooming. And for a bonus it's a host plant to the Silvery Checkerspot and Pearl Crescent butterflies. Seeds still have the fluffy pappus attached but this won’t affect their germination. I recommend pressing into the soil surface and covering lightly with a thin layer of fine soil or sand.