Japanese name: ゴマナ（胡麻菜） Scientific name:Aster glehnii var. hondoensis
[Overview]
A perennial 1–1.5 m tall, found in mountain grasslands and by roadsides.
The stem is erect and branches in the upper part.
There are basal leaves and stem leaves; the basal leaves have long winged petioles and wither by flowering time.
The stem leaves are simple and alternate, oblong, 13–19 cm long and 4–6 cm wide, with a short petiole.
Short hairs grow on both surfaces of the leaves, and the underside has glandular dots.
Many flower heads are borne in corymbs at the top of the stem.
The flower heads are about 1 cm across, with white ray florets.
The involucre is tubular-bell-shaped, 3–3.5 mm long, and the involucral bracts are in 2–3 rows.
Short hairs grow densely on the inflorescence.
The achene is narrowly oblong, 2.5 mm long, densely covered with fine hairs, and the pappus is 5 mm long.
[Uses]
The young leaves are used as a wild vegetable.
[Notes]
The name derives from the leaves resembling those of sesame.
