When most people think of salt marshes, they probably picture large expanses of nothing but grass. For those with a little more familiarity with marshes, you may go so far as to picture the common species of salt marsh plants, including smooth cordgrass (Spartina alterniflora), salt marsh hay (Spartina patens) or common glasswort (Salicornia maritima). But if you look closely, you may also find other interesting plants mixed in. This is what happened to me on a recent walk out to the salt marsh around the Back River estuary in Bourne, where I noticed an aster blooming out on the salt marsh platform. 

Although I’d never seen this species before, its habitat and its thick rather fleshy leaves helped me narrow it down rather quickly to the perennial salt marsh aster (Symphyotrichum tenuifolium). Like many asters, it blooms later in the year, typically between August and October. Each flower head is a little less than an inch across with pale pink to white petals. With rather weak stems, it tends to lie prone on top of the marsh rather than growing upright. Although perennial salt marsh asters are much less showy than other denser or more colorful asters, it’s still quite conspicuous when flowering since there are few other flowers adapted to a salt marsh environment. 

Have you noticed any interesting or unique plants growing in salt marshes lately?