Big Magenta African Daisy
Arctotis acaulis 'Big Magenta'
Plant Height: 6 inches
Flower Height: 12 inches
Spread: 4 feet
Sunlight:
Hardiness Zone: (annual)
Description:
An eye catching groundcover perennial that produces stunning, large magenta daisy blooms from winter into summer; tolerates freezing temperatures only briefly; deadhead regularly to promote new blooms; tolerates light shade only
Ornamental Features
Big Magenta African Daisy features showy hot pink daisy flowers with black eyes and a orange ring at the ends of the stems from late winter to late summer. The flowers are excellent for cutting. Its attractive tomentose pointy leaves emerge grayish green in spring, turning gray in color with hints of silver the rest of the year.
Landscape Attributes
Big Magenta African Daisy is a dense herbaceous annual with a ground-hugging habit of growth. Its medium texture blends into the garden, but can always be balanced by a couple of finer or coarser plants for an effective composition.
This plant will require occasional maintenance and upkeep, and is best cleaned up in early spring before it resumes active growth for the season. It has no significant negative characteristics.
Big Magenta African Daisy is recommended for the following landscape applications;
Planting & Growing
Big Magenta African Daisy will grow to be only 6 inches tall at maturity extending to 12 inches tall with the flowers, with a spread of 4 feet. Its foliage tends to remain low and dense right to the ground. Although it's not a true annual, this plant can be expected to behave as an annual in our climate if left outdoors over the winter, usually needing replacement the following year. As such, gardeners should take into consideration that it will perform differently than it would in its native habitat.
This plant should only be grown in full sunlight. It is very adaptable to both dry and moist growing conditions, but will not tolerate any standing water. It is considered to be drought-tolerant, and thus makes an ideal choice for a low-water garden or xeriscape application. It is not particular as to soil pH, but grows best in rich soils. It is somewhat tolerant of urban pollution. This is a selected variety of a species not originally from North America.
Big Magenta African Daisy is a fine choice for the garden, but it is also a good selection for planting in outdoor pots and containers. Because of its spreading habit of growth, it is ideally suited for use as a 'spiller' in the 'spiller-thriller-filler' container combination; plant it near the edges where it can spill gracefully over the pot. Note that when growing plants in outdoor containers and baskets, they may require more frequent waterings than they would in the yard or garden.