Daisies are popular summer flowers with bright colors. People love having daisy flower as summer bouquet, arrangement, or garden plant. Daisies also reflect positive qualities such as innocence, cheerfulness, and purity, making them perfect as gifts.
You can find daisies at any flower shops. However, planting them is a better alternative to enjoy these flowers during the summer. Daisies also come in several varieties with unique characteristics.
Most Popular Daisy Flower Types
Numerous daisy flower types grow in various regions, but not all of them are widely known. Here are seven of the most popular daisy types:
- Gerbera Daisies
Gerbera daisies have a perfect circular shape with sunray-like petals. They come in colors such as red, pink, yellow, orange, and purple. Some gerberas, such as the Cartwheel Chardonnay, have semi-double shapes.
- Common Daisies
Common daisies are ball-like, with single or double petal arrangement. This daisy flower is often thought as weed due to its quick growth. However, it creates the amazing look in a pot or garden if you plant them properly.
- Oxeye Daisies
Oxeye daisies grow wild in Europe and are often considered as pests. However, they are perfect for a wildflower garden, with a sunny yellow center and white circular petals.
- Painted Daisies
Painted daisies have fern-like leaves and bright petal colors. They are easy to care and can grow to two feet tall. Painted daisies are perfect for beginner plant owners, and they are perfect as cut flowers.
- Marguerite Daisies
Marguerite daisies have vibrant colors, with a yellow center and various shades of pink or purple petals. They are annual flowers, which means you can only enjoy them for one season.
If you prefer the more unusual look, Shasta daisies are perfect. They have thinner, curler petals that give an exotic look. Shasta daisies are mixed of crossing between Oxeye daisies and several wild species.
Daisy Flower Care Tips
Daisy flower care is quite easy, mostly because it originated from wild species. They love fertile soil but may tolerate slightly dry one. They need regular watering during the growing season, but you cannot let them live on soggy soil.
Daisy flower also needs monthly fertilizing. Regular, all-purpose fertilizer (10-16-10) works wonder on daisies. If your daisies are in the middle of growing season, you can add the fertilizing frequency to once every two weeks.
Well-blooming daisies require “deadheading”, which means snipping off decaying flowers. This process helps your plant to grow more robustly. Daisies don’t need a strict watering schedule. You can wait until the soils dry a bit before watering again.
Related: Poppy Flower Type
How to Prepare Seeds before Planting Daisy Flower
Planting daisy flowers require seed preparation process. You can do it by filing seed container with seed-starting soil mix. If you want to prepare your own soil, mix regular soil with perlite, vermiculite, and peat moss, in equal amounts.
Once you place the seeds in the container, keep the soil moist every day, but not soggy. Keep the daily temperature is around 21 degrees Celsius (70 degrees Fahrenheit). Give the seeds eight hours of sunlight. Wait until you see sprouts.
How to Plant Daisy Flower in Garden
A daisy flower garden creates amazing sight when the blooms appear. During the seed preparation process, work on your garden by mixing it with organic compost. Make sure the garden gets many suns every day. Create 30.5 cm of distance (12 inches) between seed holes.
Place each seedling in the prepared hole. Cover it gently with thin soil layer (less than 0.50 cm). Water the soil afterwards, but don’t let it become soggy. Apply all-purpose fertilizer, either the granular or water-soluble one.
When your flowers start to grow, mulch the surrounding areas to prevent weed. Apply 5 to 7 cm of mulch (2 to 3 inches). Leave 2 to 3 cm (5 to 7 inches) of the mulch-free area around each plant.
Related: Sweat Pea Flower
How to Plant Daisy Flower in Pot
Potted daisy flowers will bring cheer to any room. You can prepare the seeds in a container (for multiple pots) or directly sow the seeds in the pot. The pot must be at least 30 cm (around 12 inches), with proper drainage holes and a saucer.
Before putting in the soil, sterilize the pot by soaking it in water and bleach solution for 10 minutes. The water and bleach mixture must have a 9:1 ratio (nine parts of water for one part of bleach). Wash the pot with mild detergent, and let it dry naturally.
Place the seeds like what you would do in the container. Put the pot in a place that gets direct sunlight for three to five hours a day. Water the daisy flower from the bottom.
Related: Types of Flowers
Common Daisy Flower Problems
Aphids and mealybugs are common daisy flower problems. They can cause damages to the leaves and hinder healthy growth. If the problem is mild, use horticultural soap or oil to remove them. Consider using an insecticide if the problem is serious.
Mildew can happen because of moist leaves and narrow flower distances. Make sure you create proper distance between flowers as explained before. Avoid watering the plant from above, because the wet plant is an ideal habitat for mold.
Daisy Flower Arrangement Tips
Want to create a beautiful daisy flower arrangement? Make sure to cut them in the morning, using a 45-degree angle cut for better water absorption. Pour about one inch of warm water in the vase before placing the flowers.
Arrange your flowers with the tallest in the center and the shorter around them. When you see discoloration, replace the water. Trim all the decaying parts to make the flowers stay fresh longer.
Conclusion
Daisy flower is one of the most classic options to adorn houses. They are also perfect as arrangements, and easy to take care of. Plant your own daisy at home and get the best view when the blooming season comes.