Dimorphotheca

These are hardy annuals or tender perennials that produce large, vividly colored flowers on top of long, slender stems. The flowers resemble daisies and they belong to the Daisy family, Compositae. They are natives of South Africa and many varieties have been raised from the original wild types. D. aurantiaca produces blooms in pale and dark yellows, salmons and apricots, or white. D. Ecklonis can grow up to 2 feet high and bears large, white flowers tinted with purple in the summer. D. annua grows 18 inches high and produces white flowers softly stained with purple-blue in the summer. The latter two are usually grown as half-hardy annuals. Seeds are sown in a warm greenhouse, temperature 50-55 degrees, in March and are transplanted outdoors. D. Ecklonis is a shrubby perennial that if wintered in a cool, sunny greenhouse, will continue to grow yearly.

Pot Cultivation

These plants can be planted outdoors in regular garden soil that is well drained. They need a sunny spot to grow in. They will not thrive in ground that is full of clay or in a shady border, nor do they prosper in too hot of weather. When they are grown in pots of sandy, loamy soil in the greenhouse, a night temperature of 45-50 degrees will be fine.

Propagation

Seeds can be sown outside in the early spring so that they will bloom in June and July. When they reach about 12 inches high, they need to be thinned out to about 4 inches apart, so it's unnecessary to sow the seeds thickly in the first place. Lightly cover the seeds with soil by just raking over them after planting. The seedlings should not be transplanted, just thinned out to give them plenty of room for full development. Seeds can also be sown in pots from September to January. The seedlings are carefully transplanted to 2�-inch pots and later into the 5- or 6-inch pots in which they will bloom.

D. aurantiaca

VARIETIES

• D. aurantiaca;
• D. calendulacea (orange-yellow flowers);
• D. Ecklonis;
• D. annua;
• D. chrysanthemifolia.