Aster "Electric Red"

* The plant was supposedly brought to Europe in 1728 from Beijing.
The seeds most likely sent were from a cultivated form. By 1745, varieties with double inflorescences had already appeared in France. From France, the aster arrived in England in 1752. The ray flowers of wild specimens were blue, carmine, and purple, but by the end of the 18th century, varieties with white, violet, red, pink, lilac, blue, and purple inflorescences were already found in European gardens. In the early 19th century, the Versailles gardener Truffaut bred luxurious double asters in a variety of colors with large, round inflorescences. These asters later became known as peony asters. From the mid-19th century, asters became especially popular in Germany, where the center of their breeding shifted.
It was in Germany, beginning in the late 19th century, that most of the annual aster varieties and garden groups were developed. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, interest in asters arose in the United States. Varieties bred overseas were distinguished by their tall stature and large, densely double blooms. These garden groups include California Giant, Fluffy, American Bush, and American Beauty.
The global selection of annual asters is vast. Currently, over 300 varieties are offered in various company catalogs alone, and collections boast many more, over 600.
Early varieties have the shortest period from germination to flowering, only 83 to 106 days. They bloom as early as July.
Medium-season varieties: 107-120 days from germination to flowering. They bloom in early to mid-August. This group includes a large number of cultivars and varieties.
Late varieties: the period from germination to the beginning of flowering is over 120 days (121-131 days), they bloom in late August - early September.
The flowering period for different varieties and cultivars ranges from 35 to 60 days.
The shortest period - up to 40 days - is for garden asters of the Victoria group.
American bush aster, Waldersee aster, Dwarf royal aster, and Peony aster bloom for 40-50 days.
Anemone asters bloom for more than 50 days: Queen of the Market, Margarita, Petito and Edelweiss.
Based on their use, asters are classified as cut flowers, trellis flowers, and universal flowers. Ttrellis flowers are dwarf and low-growing varieties, planted in flower beds. They can be grown in pots and containers, producing beautiful blooms as early as late spring, early summer, or late fall.
Most aster varieties are cut flowers. They are tall, with long, sturdy stems and large, double inflorescences. Finally, there's a group of universal varieties, with medium-sized, double inflorescences and fairly long stems, but not particularly low or sturdy in appearance.
The richness of aster color rivals that of gladioli and sweet peas. It comes in white, all shades of pink, from the lightest to the darkest, black-red, or deep carmine. It also comes in an incredible variety of blues, from pale blue to deep lilac and deep violet, and lilacs, from the lightest to the darkest. There are varieties with cream and yellow inflorescences. The only thing missing so far are orange and green asters. However, there are bicolor varieties, with contrasting tips of the ray florets (for example, the Rosa Turm variety) or with a white longitudinal stripe on the colored ray florets (Rainbow, Contraster, and Gray Lady).
And another very important economic trait is the field resistance of varieties to fusarium.
Many varieties have low field resistance to fusarium. Sometimes, up to 80% of plants planted in flower beds or gardens are affected. However, there are varieties whose fusarium incidence is no more than 10%, and in favorable years, they are completely unaffected. We call such varieties resistant.