Indian Blanket Flower Perennial
Common names range from indian blanket to blanket flower to others.
Indian blanket flower perennial. The indian blanket flower sometimes just called the blanket flower or referred to by its scientific name gaillardia is an easy to grow perennial that many mistake as a type of daisy. The gaillardia flower has very vibrant and bold colors in red yellow and orange with a blanket like quilted look from which it gets its common name. Gaillardia pulchella firewheel indian blanket indian blanketflower or. To many people blanketflowers are wildflowers.
Blanketflower or blanket flower is a cheerful perennial flower with large daisy like blooms. Blanket flowers are related to sunflowers daisies and asters. This is the annual version of the familiar native firewheel. Today these popular flowers can be found all over the u s.
In one variety almost the entire flower is red with only the barest tips of the petals touched with yellow. Drought tolerant and delightfully colorful blanket flowers gaillardia are short lived perennials renowned for their profuse long lasting colorful mounds of bright single or double daisy like flowers atop an attractive gray green foliage from early summer to fall. Native to north america gaillardia is hardy in usda zones 5 through 10 and thrives in most regions of the united states with only. The biggest problem with blanket flowers.
To others they are a. Gaillardia also known as blanket flower is an easy to grow short lived perennial with richly colored daisy like flowers. It blooms practically year round in some areas but more typically in summer to early fall. The central disc florets of the flower head tend to be more red violet with the outer ray florets being yellow.
Tough cold hardy plants these flowers are dependably perennial for decades attracting plentiful pollinators to their nectar rich blooms every year. The plant grows from about 15 to a maximum height of 3. The flowers seemed to remind people of brightly colored native american blankets and many started calling them indian blanket flower. They bloom too much.
Through to colorado and south into mexico was cross bred with gaillardia aristata a prairie. There are over two dozen species in the gaillardia genus and most are native to some area of north america. Blanket flower indian blanket gaillardia previous next. Drought tolerant blanket flowers are easy to grow.
On top of their visual appeal the bright cheery blossoms of blanket flower are a wonderful food source for pollinators. There are more than 20 species of blanket flower and most of them are native to the us including the indian blanket. Come fall small birds also love to pick seeds off of spent blooms. Gaillardia or indian blanket flower is an ornamental flowering plant valued for its ability to attract butterflies to the garden.
Most modern blanket flowers we have now are actually hybrids. With such an extensive bloom time few other perennials can rival what blanket flower brings to the garden. Perennial gaillardia also known as blanket flower is an easy grower that blooms big color for months. Although the plant is an annual it sometimes behaves like a short lived perennial by reseeding and coming back a second year.
They are native to central united states and canada. Named after the native indian blankets whose color pattern they. Gaillardia pulchella which is native from the southeastern u s.