Daisy Bellis perennis
Table of Contents
A familiar and common plant with yellow and white flower heads that brighten up lawns and meadows. The daisy is a real favourite with children who use it to make ‘daisy chains’ by joining them together.
Plant family: Asteraceae
Aliases: Lawn daisy, bruisewort, woundwort, noon flower
Flowering period: March – October
Flower colour: White – yellow
Preferred soil type: Most types, moist
Habitat: Grassland, meadows, verges, turf
Status: Common
General information
Arguably, the most familiar and common of all garden wildflowers, the daisy is a hardy, perennial plant. It’s sometimes referred to as the English or lawn daisy, to distinguish it from the many other types of daisy plants and flowers. It’s found in all types of grassy places, such as meadows and roadside verges.
It’s very common in lawns, where it’s often considered a problem weed by gardeners, as it’s difficult to control with herbicides. A relatively low growing plant, rarely growing over 20cm in height, that will withstand heavy wear and trampling.
Daisies will grow on most types of soil, but prefers moist conditions, they will happily grow in both full sunlight or partial shade. They flower between March and October, but it’s not uncommon for them to bloom all year round.
Identification
Flowers: Daisies produce clusters of white and yellow solitary flowers, borne on short stems. The flowers typically measure between 15 – 25mm in diameter. They consist of a central yellow disc of tube florets with many white (sometimes pink) outer ray florets.
Leaves: The leaves are oval – spoon shaped, sometimes with scalloped edges, they’re mostly smooth, but on occasions fine hairs may be present. They typically measure between 15 – 35mm in length.
Value for wildlife
They’re a big favourites with key pollinators, like bees, butterflies and hoverflies, which come to feed on their nectar rich, easily accessible, open flowers.
Uses for daisy
Daisies are a food plant, the tender young leaves and flower buds can be added to salads, used in sandwiches or make a potherb.
Daisies have many medicinal uses, these include treatment for rheumatism, muscle fatigue, fever, bleeding and wounds, stomach ache, coughs and kidney disorders.
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