Garden and Flowers

SPANISH DAISY

This small perennial from Central America is one of the greatest discoveries of recent years, though it had, in fact, long been growing wild in southern Europe, where it often appears in the joints of walls. With the boom in patio cultivation, firms supplying flowering plants for containers and hanging baskets in May can no longer even think of doing without fleabane. Rightly so, since keen gardeners are unlikely to come across a more rewarding plant.

Its growth is compact and yet it looks attractively casual in a hanging basket. New daisy-like flower heads are borne on thin stems throughout the summer. They are pink when they open, then rapidly turn white, and finally, as they grow older, change back to rose-red again. This makes the plant always look two-tone. Don’t be misled by the culti-vars marketed by the plant trade. I, for one, cannot see any difference between them and the wild species.

This delightful plant will tolerate about 5 degrees of frost and cannot therefore be overwintered outdoors in colder climates. Fortunately, it may be brought into flower within 3-4 months of being sown. Sometimes the seed will germinate in the garden, especially in open, sandy spots, or in between steps, paving stones, or joints of walls. Those are places where the seeds have been wafted on their “parachutes.”

Sow this small jewel indoors between March and April or outdoors in April-May. In the first case, the plant will come into flower by the end of June. It is possible to cut back the plant in autumn and overwinter it at a minimum temperature of 23 °F.