Check this out Stephanie!!! Blooming in less than a month.
Blooming Gaillardia.
Another one they are all different.
is that a round up flower?
Yes, I got them from Stephanie as small plants, aren't they pretty?
I found one blooming from a random seed yesterday. Isn't it the "wrong" time of the year for them to bloom?
Woohoo!! You're off and running, Josephine! They're such happy flowers!
Lisa, actually, they'll bloom early spring to frost if you keep them watered. They also are very good reproducers, which is perfect for Josephine's slope.
I am really thrilled with them, they are so pretty. They were almost glowing in the sunshine today.
Beautiful!! Is it too early to put them on my "want" list for spring RU? LOL. Gotta have some of those.
Glenna
I will try to get seed from them, although it it freezes soon I may not get seed from them.
I have PLENTY of seeds left from last year. If not, I'll have volunteers to share. They're already coming up in the flower bed.
Josephine, there are times when they do look like they are glowing. They are bee magnets, too. I couldn't get over the number of bees attracted to my gardens because of them.
Can you tell me what kind of conditions you have these planted in? They look like something my husband would enjoy(he likes LOTS of color in the garden)Do different varieties grow to different heights and does anyone have a favorite variety I should look for?thanks
My gallardias are blooming as well, they weren't blooming this summer but I had just planted them. What few butterflies we have left have shown an interest in them.
I have mine in a flower bed facing south, but it gets partial shade from a tree above.
There are many different varieties of Gaillardia, Stepanie, do you which one this is?
Gaillardia aristata is what's on the seeds I received. I grow mine in full hot west facing sun. They grow wild out in fields and such, so they can take harsh growing conditions. If they don't get proper rain or water, they'll die back, but they reseed freely and come back later on in the season.
Stephanie, are your plants annual, coming back from seed? or are they perennial coming back from the root??
The mother plant came back from the root, but those I gave you were volunteers.
Thank you Stephanie, so it is a perennial, in that case it must be Gaillardia aristata for sure, which is native to North America but not to Texas which is a real pity, but it is gorgeous any way, here is its native range; scroll down the link page to the bottom.
http://plants.usda.gov/java/profile?symbol=GAAR
I am going to move it to the back yard when it goes dormant, since I am trying to have only Texas natives in the front yard, in the back yard i have more of a mix so it will be o.k.
Josephine if you want seeds from the native annual remind me next year late spring I will collect seeds. Locally called Indian Blanket. Some years I have acres of this flower, some years not so many. Every year I discover wildflowers I have never seen before. I need to start a photo gallery of native flowers, flowering shrubs and trees I have on my piece of the Wildcat Thicket. I also have big hungry bobcats hunting here in the woods.
You are one lucky and thoughtful guy Larry, I will remind you about it in the spring.
Watch it this winter and see what happens. I really thought it was the native.
I certainly will Stephanie, it is beautiful and native to the west and north of us, I plan to keep it.
Look at who was nectaring on my Gaillardia today, a beautiful male Monarch.
Are there any species of gallardia that are perennial and native to TX? The one you have has a very wide distribution, but not in TX? I know the ones on the roadside are annuals but I thought there were some perennial native species too.
C
NPIN lists several, native in various parts of the state.
Gaillardia aestivalis
Gaillardia multiceps
Gaillardia pinnatifida
Gaillardia suavis
Not as flashy with the petals (although I bet one could do a little selective seed collecting and develop a stand with more color). The suavis one is called "perfume balls" - it has the same puffball shape as the indian blanket, with little piddly petals, so I guess attracts the polinators by smell.
Just a word of warning I have grown the perennial type. Not sure which one but it took over. I don't like to use thee word invasive but it did crowd out a bunch of other flowers. I had to actuallly pull some of the plants out.
I honestly couldn't tell the (A) from the (P) when they were in bloom
These are all perennial and very hard to find. Gaillardia suavis grows in a wild area here, I will see if I can get some seed.
G. aestivalis
http://wildflower.org/plants/result.php?id_plant=GAAE
G. pinnatifida
http://wildflower.org/plants/result.php?id_plant=GAPI
G. multiceps
http://wildflower.org/plants/result.php?id_plant=GAMU
G. suavis
http://wildflower.org/plants/result.php?id_plant=GASU
I haven't done well with the ones I bought from the store anyway LOL. I do have one burgandy plant that is growing well and will keep it.
I found seeds for Blanketflower (Gaillardia aristata) at www.wildseedfarms.com. It is a perennial that looks very much like Indian Blanket.
I love Gaillardias and just felt an urge to jump in here... Hi Steph;o)
G. aristata is a perennial and is native to Arizona... I also grow the annual G. pulchella which is native to a large part of the US, including Texas;o)
I ♥ Everwilde Farms! They have a nice selection of native seeds and good info on what is native and where...
http://everwilde.com/index.html
Kelly
Very nice site Kelly, thank you for posting it.
You're welcome;o) And they are a Garden Watchdog Top 5 company - I have always gotten splendid seeds from them.
Hey Kelly! Nice to see you over here! :)
Arizona isn't too far from the great state of Texas;o)
I like to check out your area once in a while - lot's of stuff relevant to our growing conditions. Plus, I like to hear what all the native plant peeps have to say. You have some smart ones here and it's fun to read your threads and learn;o)
Here's one that's blooming now....
Wow! that is gorgeous. You guys are lucky, you have a longer growing season.