Daisy Care Guide: How to Grow Daisies in Your Garden

Daisies (Bellis perennis) include a few species of flowering plants within the Asteraceae family that are native to Europe, Africa, and North America. The word “daisy” comes from the Old English word dæges-eage, meaning "day's eye," because the flowers open at dawn. Related flowers, including certain varieties of chrysanthemums, are also known as daisies.

There are many varieties of daisies, from the best-known variety featuring yellow centers and white flowers to fast-growing wildflowers. These are some of the different types to add to your garden:

1. 1. Shasta daisy (Leucanthemum x superbum): The Shasta daisy is perhaps the most well-known type of daisy. It has white petals surrounding a yellow center.
2. 2. Common daisy (Bellis perennis): Perhaps the most recognizable daisy, the common daisy (also known as the lawn daisy or English daisy) has a flat disk shape with a ring of petals around the center.
3. 3. Barberton daisy (Gerbera jamesonii): This daisy comes in shades of red, pink, orange, and yellow and can feature single or semi-double blooms.
4. 4. Marguerite daisy (Argyranthemum frutescens): The Marguerite daisy comes in white, yellow, and pink flowers.
5. 5. Oxeye daisy (Leucanthemum vulgare): These white flowers typically grow as wildflowers in fields and meadows, and they can grow and spread easily in your garden.
6. 6. Painted daisy (Tanacetum coccineum): These flowers have yellow centers surrounded by petals that can be red, yellow, pink, violet, or white.

When growing daisies from seeds, the flowers will bloom the following year. Plant the popular Shasta daisy from seed by following these steps:

• Sow daisy seeds in the spring. Daisy seeds can be sown outside when the soil has hit 70 degrees Fahrenheit.
• Plant the seeds in a sunny spot. Daisy seeds need light to germinate, and the flowers do best in full sun.
• Freely sow the daisy seeds. Cover the sowed seeds with an eighth of an inch of soil so that the sunlight can still reach the seeds.
• Plant the seeds in nutrient-rich, well-draining soil. Use a mix of sand, peat moss, and manure compost soil for your daisies.
• Keep the soil moist. Water the soil to keep it moist. The seeds should germinate in 10 to 20 days.

If you want flowers the same year you plant your daisies, buy plants that are already grown, and transplant them from a pot to your garden in the early spring.

• Plant daisies in nutrient-rich soil. If your soil needs more nutrients, apply an all-purpose fertilizer to help the daisies grow. You can also add a layer of mulch to preserve moisture.
• Make space for the daisies in your garden. Dig a hole that is twice the diameter of the pot the daisy plant came in. Place the daisy in the hole so the root ball is flush with the surface of the soil.
• Space the daisies one to two feet apart. Daisies are fast-growing, so be sure to give the root balls room to expand in your garden.
• Water daisies at the base of the plant. Water the base of the plant at least once a week. The daisies don’t grow well in soggy soil, so make sure the soil is well-drained before watering again.

These drought-tolerant flowers are easy to care for. Follow these tips to keep your flowers strong from season to season:

1. 1. Support your daisies with stakes. Some types of daisies that grow tall and may fall over after heavy winds. Keep an eye on your plants, and stake if necessary.
2. 2. Deadhead the blooms to promote growth. Daisies can bloom multiple times in a season. If you deadhead the flower heads as soon as they start to fade, you will encourage new blooms to form as many as three times in a season. When the plant has finished blooming, cut back the stems all the way to the leaves, and the plant will rebloom the following year.
3. 3. Propagate daisies by dividing. Daisies will self-seed and proliferate, which means the bushes will grow bigger year after year. In a year or two after the initial bloom, the plant may get so large that its roots overcrowd each other, leading to the withering of certain parts of the plant. At that point, dig up the entire bush, and cut away the dead parts and the corresponding roots. Divide the remaining plant and its roots, and plant the separated sections 10 to 12 inches away from each other. Divide as often as necessary. If you do this, you will have healthy daisy bushes for years to come.

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