My purple asters started turning brown at the base and are now drying up completely? Why?

Question

All of my other plants in my yard are fine. These are almost three years old and have done great. now they are dying - just turning brown. Can anyone tell me what is going on?

Answer 1

well asters are a palnt that  will die down to the ground after its flowering season,and return the next spring.mind you i am in australia and we may call different plants asters.best of luck,i'd cut them back .

Answer 2

I had the same problem with 2 of my asters last year.  They turned completely brown making you think they were dead.  I just made sure to give them a lot of water and then I noticed green growth started to come out of some of the branches.  Then within a few weeks they were fine and flowered.  This may be the case with you so I'd wait a few weeks to see if they come back before you cut them.