Discover 20 Beautiful Types of Daisies to Grow

Ask a child to draw a flower, and you'll likely get a daisy. Daisies are cheerful flowers that grow in the wild, in gardens and in containers across a range of climates. From wildflowers to annuals to perennials, these members of the Aster family are easy enough for beginners to grow, and most are beloved by butterflies and bees that crave their sweet nectar. Browse our gallery of 20 different types of daisies to find your favorites and learn how to plant, grow and enjoy them at home.

How to Plant Daisies

Daisy options abound at local garden centers and online nurseries. Check your seed packets or plant labels for specific directions, or research the type of daisies you're growing. These are the general guidelines for most daisies:

When to Plant

Plant perennial daisies in the fall or early spring, and annual daisies after your last spring frost.

Soil Composition

If you're growing the types of daisies that need rich soil, work in some compost before planting. Check your soil’s pH, too. Most prefer a neutral to slightly acidic soil. For daisies in containers, use potting soil, not garden soil.

Sunlight

Planting in full sun is typically best; in hot, southern gardens, choose a location with morning sun and afternoon shade.

Starting Daisy Seeds Indoors

African daisy seeds and Shasta daisy seeds are the easiest to grow; along with painted daisy seeds, they can be sown directly outdoors. Many other daisy seeds should be started indoors 6 to 8 weeks before your last frost for a headstart on blooms. Use a seed-starting mix and surface-sow them in trays. Lightly press them down and let them sprout under a grow light or in a sunny window--but don't let them get hot enough to dry out or burn. Ideally, the relative humidity should be around 60 percent; you can put plastic wrap or a dome over the trays to hold in the moisture. Check regularly to add moisture, if needed, or to be sure the soil isn't staying overly wet. Remove the covering periodically to allow air circulation, which helps discourage disease.

Transplanting Daisies

Wait until the soil temperature is reliably warm to transplant your seedlings. Create a divot in the soil large enough for the root ball, gently loosen the roots with your fingers and tuck in your plant. Nudge the soil back around the roots, being careful not to bury the leaves. The foliage should sit just above soil level. Use your hands to firm the soil around the base of the plant and settle the roots. Water gently but deeply.

Spacing Between Daisies

Plant most types of daisies 12 to 18 inches apart.

How to Care for Daisies

Fertilizing

If you're growing the types of daisies that benefit from fertilizer, use an organic liquid or slow-release granular fertilizer according to your product's instructions. Try Foxfarm’s liquid Big Bloom plant food or Espoma’s granular Flower-tone.

Weeding

Suppress weeds with a layer of organic mulch; 2 to 3 inches of straw, pine bark or shredded leaves will keep weeds at bay and help retain moisture.

Pests and Disease

Proper drainage is key to success with daisies, as the low-growing foliage is susceptible to crown disease, powdery mildew and root rot. For most types of daisies, you can allow the soil to dry between waterings. If your soil drains poorly, add organic matter to improve it or plant in raised beds or containers with holes.

Watch out for aphids and thrips. At the first sign of infestation, spray the leaves with an organic insecticidal soap or neem oil according to package instructions. Spray in the evening to avoid sunburning leaves or disrupting pollinators.

Deadheading

As long as plants haven’t fully set seed, they will continue to flower. To encourage a longer display, deadhead the daisy flowers by snipping off spent blooms just above the next leaf node.

How to Harvest Daisies

Enjoying daisies as cut flowers encourages regrowth, so share your flowers generously. Harvest daisy flowers just as they begin to open. Cut each stem down to the next leaf node, flower bud or basal leaves rather than leaving denuded stems behind. Place them into clean water as you harvest. Daisies are hardy cut flowers; expect 7 to 10 days of vase life.

Floral Design Tips for Cut Daisies

• When arranging Shasta daisies, follow writer and floral stylist Amy Merrick’s lead and keep your composition simple. Layering daisies with other white, yellow-centered flowers of varied scales achieves an airy, romantic look. Try pairing them with chamomile or feverfew and a cosmos like 'Afternoon White.'
  
  
• Gerbera daisies are playful by nature, so think outside the vase. Check out Instagrammer's Mood Fleuriste’s minimalist use of pale peach gerberas alongside melons and smokebush, held in flower frogs in a still-life style.
  
  
• Charming oxeye daisies press beautifully. Create your own flower press and immortalize the feeling of wandering through a summer meadow. Display preserved blooms in a frame or shadow box.

20 Types of Daisy Flowers

Shasta Daisy (Leucanthemum superbum)

The Shasta daisy is one of the most popular types of daisies. This gorgeous, reliable perennial thrives in full sun with average moisture. If you've grown coreopsis, you'll find their care and growth habit is similar. Plant this daisy flower in the fall for the best chance of blooms the following year; the flowers usually appear from late spring or early summer into fall. Shasta daisies can be pure white, creamy white, butter yellow, lemon yellow or gold and make excellent cut flowers. The frilly, double-flowered varieties are especially pretty. Their foliage reaches around 12 inches tall, with flowering stems that grow 18 to 24 inches. Notable varieties include 'Snowcap', 'Becky' and 'Banana Cream.' Hardy in Zones 5 to 9.

Gerbera or Transvaal Daisy (Gerbera jamesonii)

A mainstay of the cut flower and garden center industries, gerbera daisies are known for their saturated, candy-like colors. The gerbera daisy hails from South Africa. The commonly available, hybridized gerberas are treated as annual container and bedding plants, flowering from late spring into fall in hues that range from lemon to peach to raspberry (and neutrals too, if that’s your style). These types of daisies are compact, typically reaching 9 to 12 inches wide and 10 to 18 inches tall. Gerberas can be grown as perennials if they're well-mulched when the temperatures drop; they don't usually survive below 40 degrees F. Clemson cooperative extension reports that gerbera daisies may be successfully overwintered indoors. Look for single, double, semi-double and spider flower gerbera daisies. Shown here: 'Rose Bright Light Eye.' Hardy in Zones 8 to 10.

African Daisy (Osteospermum spp.)

African daisies are an option for anyone who loves the daisy flower in shades of white, purple, pink, blue and yellow. They tolerate heat and drought and resist deer, producing vigorously through peak summer. African daisies are good cut flowers and easy to start from seed indoors in the spring or directly in the garden after all chance of frost has passed. The African daisy, also called Cape daisy, grows as an annual in cooler climates and typially blooms from spring to frost, reaching 1 to 3 feet tall. If you garden in a hot climate, the flowers will probably stop in hot, dry weather and resume when the weather cools off in fall. Hardy in Zones 9 to 10.

English Daisy (Bellis perennis)

Known and beloved for their playful, pom-pom shaped blooms, English daisies are standouts in the Aster family. Filling a helpful niche of cool-season color, they can be found alongside pansies, sweet alyssum and snapdragons at garden centers in autumn and early spring. Plant them in the cooler months, either in containers or garden beds, and they'll bloom in cool fall weather and/or from spring into mid-summer. In regions with cool summers, English daisies may thrive through the warm season and, if they set seed, will readily self-sow. The flowers are available in pinks, blues, whites and reds. Notable varieties are 'Pomponette,' 'Bellissima', 'Habanera Mix' and 'Tasso Pink.' Hardy in Zones 4 to 8

Montauk or Nippon Daisy (Nipponanthemum nipponicum)

Another fantastic option for cool season interest, the Montauk daisy is a species that looks similar to the Shasta daisy but mirrors the cold hardiness of the English daisy. Tolerating drought as well as salty coastal conditions, this plant boasts a toughness equal to its beauty and is a worthy selection for xeriscapes and rock gardens. Forming a large mound up to 3 feet tall and 3 feet wide, the Montauk daisy flower is white with yellow centers, and it's a popular landscape choice that blooms from late summer to the first hard frost. Prune Montauk daisies in spring through midsummer to encourage branching, avoid floppy stems and support a spectacular show of fall blooms. Hardy in Zones 5 to 9.

Oxeye Daisy (Leucanthemum vulgare)

A widespread wildflower, the dainty but resilient oxeye daisy, sometimes shown as ox-eye daisy, is a vigorous bloomer that is often considered invasive. Native to Europe and temperate regions of Asia, the oxeye daisy flower was introduced to North America in the 1800s as an ornamental plant and since has naturalized widely. Look for it in wild meadows and roadside ditches. Its white blooms appear from May or June into August or September.

Before planting, consult your local cooperative extension to see if your state restricts planting oxeyes to protect native species from the plants' aggressive habit. Avoid introducing oxeye in pasture settings, where it is unpalatable to grazing animals and crowds out forage plants, as described by University of Nevada’s cooperative extension service.

If properly managed, oxeye daisy can be a useful food source for pollinators. Permaculture designer Tao Orion writes that the oxeye daisy serves “valuable ecological functions,” especially in areas stripped of biodiversity and soil fertility. If oxeye is ill-advised in your area, shop for native species of Aster that will offer similarly bright-eyed blooms while playing nicely with the plants next door. Hardy in Zones 3 to 8.

Gaillardia Daisy (Gaillardia spp.)

Also called blanket flower, gaillardia is a wildflower that grows to 24 inches tall and opens big, showy blooms from summer to fall. Available in shades of red, orange, yellow and bicolors, these daisies thrive in full sun. They don’t mind poor soils or hot weather, but need soil that drains easily. Use them in containers or the garden, and mulch them for winter protection. 'Dwarf Goblin' is a popular choice for containers, growing 12 inches tall with olive-green leaves and flowers sporting bands of yellow and orange. Hardy in Zones 3 to 10.

Seaside Daisy (Erigeron glaucus)

Seaside daisies grow happily in the coastal regions of California and Oregon, as you’d guess from their name. The plants are low-growing and need little water in those areas, but benefit from some extra water in other locations. Seaside daisies form mounds from 6 to 12 inches tall, prefer full sun to partial shade and like soil that drains easily. Also called seaside fleabane and beach aster, these daisy flowers aren't picky about soil pH but grow best in sandy, loamy or chalky soils. You'll find them in colors like white, orange, lavender, lilac and pink. These charmers are virtually pest and disease-free. Hardy in Zones 5 to 8.

Damianita Daisy (Chrysactinia Mexicana)

Although it’s actually an evergreen shrub, Damianita Chrysactinia Mexicana is typically grown for its golden yellow flowers, which open primarily in spring and reappear on and off until late summer or early fall. This bushy plant with needle-like, slightly fragrant leaves grows to two feet tall. Native to Texas and New Mexico, it’s well-suited for use in borders or as a ground cover on slopes, hillsides and other areas exposed to hot sunlight. It needs excellent drainage and prefers well-drained sand or other arid to semi-arid soils. It’s very tolerant of drought and cold. Hardy in Zones 7 to 11.

Blue-Eyed Daisy (Arctotis stoechadifolia)

There are about 50 species of Arctotis, more commonly known as African daisies. They're also called by variations on that name, including Blue-eyed African daisies, Blue-eyed daisies, Cape daisies and South African daisies. The plants crave dry conditions and sandy or rocky soils, and while they require full sun, they may stop blooming in the hottest parts of the season. The showy, creamy white flowers have steely-blue centers and grayish green leaves. They spread quickly via seeds or roots, so be sure this daisy isn't considered invasive in your area before you plant it. Try it on a rock wall or in a rock garden, or use it in a sandy spot to help control erosion. The cut flowers are great for arrangements, but they close late in the day and on days that don’t have much sunlight. Grown it as an annual or tender perennial. Hardy in Zones 9 to 11.

Crown Daisy (Glebionis coronaria)

The old botanical name for the crown daisy was Chrysanthemum coronarium, and it's sometimes referred to as the garland chrysanthemum. Some people treat these daisy plants as leafy vegetables and eat the leaves and flowers, as long as they’ve never been treated with or exposed to any kind of chemicals, pesticides or insecticides. Popular in Asian cuisine, they add a slightly bitter, peppery taste when cooked or used fresh in stir-fries, soups, teas, salads and stews. Maturing at 2 to 4 feet tall, the plants are bright yellow or white and open from late spring to early fall. Because they self-seed so readily, they crowd out native plants in some areas and are considered invasive in some regions. Before you grow them, be sure they’re not banned where you garden. Hardy in Zones 5 to 9.

Blue Marguerite (Felicia amelloides)

Commonly called the blue daisy or blue marguerite, Felicia amelloides is a bushy evergreen native to South Africa. Its small, sky-blue, aster-like flowers open from summer to fall, attracting bees and butterflies. It’s easy to grow, needing only moderate amounts of water and full sun as the plants mature from 12 to 24 feet tall. The blooms may stop or slow down in hot, humid weather. Try the plants in containers, rock gardens, beds and borders and cottage gardens or use them as a colorful groundcover. Hardy in Zones 10 to 11.

Chocolate Daisy (Berlandiera lyrata)

Chocolate lovers can’t resist plants that smell like their favorite treat. Chocolate daisies, also called chocolate flowers, have quarter-sized, yellow blooms with red stripes underneath; the scent actually comes from their gray-green foliage. Native to the Southwest, these night-blooming flowers take full sun and close or droop during the day. Instead of deadheading the flowers at the end of the growing season, let the seeds ripen on the stems so they'll self-sow. Chocolate daisies die to the ground in winter and grow back bigger, spreading up to 2 feet wide and 18 inches high. Plant them in groups for the best effect or use them as edging. Hardy in Zones 4 to 10.

Marguerite Daisy (Argyranthemum spp.)

You’ll probably know this beauty as Marguerite daisy or Paris daisy. While this tender perennial, a native of the Canary Islands, is rather short-lived, it’s easy to grow in full sun in average, well-drained soils. The bushy plants reach 2 to 3 feet tall and start blooming in the summer, but slow down when the temperatures rise. Look for cultivars in shades of white, red, pink and yellow; some have double flowers. The foliage, which can range from dark green to blue green, is aromatic when bruised. Add this daisy flower to beds and borders or grow the plants in large containers with drainage holes. If you live where the sun is hot and intense, give the plants morning sun with afternoon shade. Hardy in Zones 10 to 11.

Golden Shrub Daisy (Euryops pectinatus)

The golden shrub daisy is an evergreen shrub with feathery, gray-green foliage and yellow daisy flowers held on long stalks. Bees and butterflies love it. Most insect pests avoid it, and it’s seldom bothered by disease. The plants do best in full sun, growing three to eight feet tall, and moderately fertile soil that drains easily. They’ll tolerate some shade, but flower best in lots of sunlight. This South African native doesn’t need much water and can be deadheaded and lightly pruned to encourage more blooms. Grow these cheery yellow daisies in beds and borders, coastal gardens (they doesn’t mind seaside locations), containers and cottage gardens. ‘High Noon’ grows to 14 inches tall, tolerates drought and heat and blooms all season. Give it a slow release fertilizer at planting time, following your product's directions. Hardy in Zones 8 to 11.

Dahlberg Daisy (Thymophylla tenuiloba)

Dahlberg daisies, sometimes called golden fleece, hail from Texas and Mexico. Give this upright, spreading daisy with small, yellow flowers dry to average, well-drained soil and full sun; even sandy soil is fine. The drought tolerant plants grow 6 to 12 inches tall and bloom from mid-summer until frost. They make an excellent groundcover and work equally well in beds, hanging baskets and other containers. You can also use them as edging plants or in rock gardens and desert gardens. This short-lived perennial, often treated as an annual, rarely has serious pest or disease problems. Hardy in Zones 9 to 11.

Coneflower (Echinacea spp.)

Perk up your midsummer garden with coneflowers and watch the butterflies and bees arrive. E. purpurea, a rough-haired purple coneflower, is a native found in the Eastern and Central U.S. These popular perennials are also available in shades of yellow, white, pink, orange and red. While the native wildflower typically grows 2 to 4 feet tall, commercial varieties range from 2 to 5 feet. After they're established, coneflowers are drought tolerant. Give them in full sun and well-draining soil; they'll grow in poor soil, but your results may be disappointing. After the first frost, cut the plants to the ground to help encourage new, healthy growth in spring. Grow them in large pots to accommodate their large roots, or enjoy them in beds and borders and cutting gardens. Most coneflowers are hardy in Zones 4 to 9.

Swan River Daisy (Brachyscome spp.)

Most Brachyscomes are native to Australia, while some come from New Guinea or New Zealand. The swan river daisy (B. iberidifolia) has fragrant blooms in mauve, purple, white and shades of blue that open from late spring until frost. Pollinators visit the nectar-rich flowers, which grow 12 to 18 inches tall, and this daisy is a welcome addition to beds, containers and mixed borders. It flowers best in full sun but can take light shade and prefers organically-rich, well-draiing soil. Pinch the growing tips to keep swan river daisies bushy, and deadhead the faded flowers. Another species, B. angustifolia, also known as B. multifida, is commonly called rock daisy or cut-leaf daisy. It also grows 12 to 18 inches tall and likes the same growing conditions. Hardy in Zones 9 to 11.

Butter Daisy (Melampodium spp.)

Two types of Melampodiums are M. leucanthemum, also called the black-foot daisy, and M. divaricata, known as the medallion flower or butter daisy for its small, butter-gold flowers with dark centers. Bushy butter daisies grow 18 to 24 inches tall in full sun and well-draining soil. Native to Brazil and Mexico, they like to stay on the dry side and perform beautifully in containers, mass plantings or borders. The flowers start opening in spring and continue until frost, and these tough, low-maintenance plants don't need deadheading. While these daisies are technically hardy in Zones 2 to 11, most gardeners treat them as annuals and compost them at the end of the growing season. That's because the plant completes its entire life cycle—that is, it grows from a seed into a seed-producing plant--in a single year.

Painted Daisy (Tanacetum coccineum)

Choose a sunny spot, or one with partial sun if you garden in a hot climate, to grow painted daisies. Also known as Pyrethrum or Chrysanthemum coccineum, these daisies have single or semi-double flowers in white, pink, red, rose and crimson and bloom in mid-summer of the second season after they're planted from seeds. They prefer full sun and evenly moist, well-draining soil and top out at 24 inches high. Use them in cutting gardens, borders, containers or beds. ‘Robinson’s Red,’ shown here, blooms from late spring to early summer, forming clumps of showy flowers with red rays around a central gold disc. Hardy in Zones 3 to 7.