Alpine Aster (Oreostemma alpigenum var. andersonii) is a perennial in the Asteracae or Aster family. As the name “alpine” suggests, its purple daisy-like flowers star the ground at high elevations, blooming June to September. It grows in meadows, lake edges, marshes, pine woods and alpine tundra at an elevation of 3,000 to 9,000 feet, primarily in the Sierra Nevada within California (where it is common) and also in Southern Oregon and Nevada.
This plant looks good among grasses in a garden version of a mountain meadow. It will need summer water.