Flower Facts: All About Daisies

“There is a flower, a little flower

With silver crest and golden eye,

That welcomes every changing hour,

And weathers every sky.”

- James Montgomery, A Field Flower.

The ever pleasant, happy and wonderful daisy! While a common flower both in flower shops and gardens around the world, the daisy is anything but boring. The daisy is so widespread that it grows on every continent, except for Antarctica. It’s also believed that the daisy, whose family and species is immense, makes up for around 10% of all flowering plants in the world.

Scientific Information

Asteraceae or Compositae is the scientific naming for the family that daisies belong to. Within this family, there are over 32,000 species and over 1900 generas in 13 subfamilies. The only other family that rivals Asteraceae is the Orchidaceae family. Daisies are also in the same family as sunflowers and share many similar growing environments.

Related: Flower Facts: All About Orchids

In general, flowers in the Asteraceae are either annuals or perennials but a large number also grow as shrubs, trees or vines. Many varieties can grow almost all year round, generally blooming in early summer and keeping blooming until late fall.

While the daisy appears to be one flower, it is actually two flowers. The yellow centre and the surrounding petals are two different blooms.

Daisy Origins, Naming, and History

The daisy is native to much of Europe and Asia but it has since become a very common flower in North America. Daisy comes from the Old English word ‘daes eage’ which means ‘day’s eye’ as it refers to the way the flower closes its petals in the evening to then reopen again at dawn.

Considered as the original species of daisy, the Bellis perennis is a very usual daisy type in Europe. This daisy species is also known for its medicinal healing properties from the 15th century onwards in many countries.

Daisy Colours

Daisies come in nearly every shade of the rainbow and a variety of shades and hues in between. Daisies can also be bi and tri-coloured.

●White

●Pink

●Red

●Blue

●Green

●Purple

●Orange

Common Daisy Types

Gerber Daisy

Name after the German botanist and doctor Traugott Gerber, the Gerber daisy is also known as the Transvaal daisy or Barberton daisy. This daisy is native to South America, Africa and Asia and is a striking flower with a large bloom that can range between 7 and 12 cm. The Gerber daisy is the fifth most used cut flower in the world.

English Daisy

Native to western, central and northern Europe, this daisy has also naturalised itself in North America. Sometimes called the common daisy or bruisewort. The English daisy has a long flowering season and is even known to bloom during mild winters. This type of daisy can be eaten as a potherb and is still commonly used in homoeopathy for its healing properties.

Aster Daisy

This genus of aster has about 180 different species within its genus. Common types of asters include the Brewer’s aster, the Jeju aster and the blue wood aster. The name aster is derived from the Greek word for star, attributing to the flower’s star-like shape. Asters are popular daisies for their unique shape and their wide array of colours.