Clickable links: Here's a close-up of the leaves/blades on young plant: http://www.flickr.com/photos/derelllicht/9387300369/ Here's a larger view of young (pre-blossoming) plant: http://www.flickr.com/photos/derelllicht/9453369918/ And here are photos of the blossoms on the plant: http://www.flickr.com/photos/derelllicht/9453370810/ http://www.flickr.com/photos/derelllicht/9684172412/

There are a lot of asters with little white flowers (or little pale blue-purple flowers), and they are notoriously difficult to tell apart. Your picture is nice and clear, but a single picture is unlikely to capture everything needed for identification of this difficult group. Having said that... Your plant is not Aster divaricatus or cordifolius, because on both of those species, upper stem leaves are small but fairly broad, unlike the little needle-like leaves in the photograph. It looks to me like Aster dumosus (because of the hint of purple in the flowers, and because of those little needle-like leaves) or maybe Aster pilosus (because of the urn-shaped flowerheads). But my experience with asters is in the northeast, and I'm sure Georgia has other species I'm not familiar with. I do think you are safe calling it an aster. Even if it's Boltonia, I think "aster" is an acceptable common name.

Not New England aster, though I'm not sure what it is. Any flowers or buds?

Xiangirl, that's a great idea -- to pinch them back. I wish I'd thought of that. Next year, for sure, as I imagine its too late for this season. I have an old fashion, single pink perennial mum that I try to remember to pinch back in early July for otherwise it gets very lanky. That mum begins to bloom in October and goes until snow or a hard frost knocks it down. It's one of the few things blooming in late October. Pollinators love it. I'd be happy to send you some if you don't already have it.