Projo Garden Blog

Osteospemum belongs in the Asteraceae family, which includes the sunflowers (helianthus) and blanket flowers (gaillardia). They have been part of my annual flower garden for many years. The daisy-like flowers have disc florets and ray florets.

The beautiful blueness on the disc of the flower head is prettiest on the purple flowers.

They are native of Africa and also know as African daisy.

In the early years, I had osteospermum in yellow and orange.

This year I put one in the ground quite early -- back in April. I planted a second one which I received on Mother's Day nearby. Both are doing well, blooming throughout the summer and are likely to continue on into November. These two also appeared to be enjoying the cold weather and the rain.

The light purple and deep purple flowers have become more popular in the past few years. Last fall I tried to keep one going indoors, but it died. Osteospermum needs a lot of sun, plenty of water and rich soil.

They also attract bees and small insects.

I'm now facing with a little dilemma - should I bring one or both indoors?

Osteospermum is considered a hardy plant, but not tough enough to withstand winter in the northeast. Perhaps I'll try again and if they don't survive, at least I'll get a chance to see the blue-eyed daisies a little longer.

 Tags  osteospermum

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