The Shasta Daisy (Leucanthemum)

I reached a milestone with the blog posting yesterday being my 2000th!

The Holiday Light Show (HLS) ran well last night and saw a moderate crowd for attendance.  The weekend crowds will certainly be larger as attendance will build as we get closer to Christmas.  The weather was chilly today but nice and sunny.  Another warming will occur this weekend and there doesn't seem to be much chance of a white Christmas.  Regardless, the last 10 days of the HLS should experience strong traffic! See www.rotarybotanicalgardens.org for more information on this family-fun event (and fundraiser for the gardens!)  Larry H. worked on some odds and ends today including more tweaking out in the HLS based on his observations last night. Bill O. came in to collect garbage and we also saw Maury and Gene.  I'm looking at seed catalogs for next year and finalizing some thoughts on our fun color themes and collections in 2016.

I've always been a fan of Shasta daisies (Leucanthemum x superbum) which have such cheery flowers over a good 10 weeks or so in summer.  Pure white isn't used enough in the summer garden and Shasta daisies are solid performers that are simply beautiful.  This plant was developed by Luther Burbank (see article below) who had an amazing life in horticulture/agriculture that warrants more examination and appreciation.  When I first started to garden, the old variety 'Alaska' was the standard offering and did well with clear white blossoms on a 3' tall plant  The variety 'Becky' seen above really increased the popularity of Shasta daisies when it was named Perennial Plant of the Year in 2003 by the Perennial Plant Association.  'Becky' can get close to 4' tall and is known for heavy flower production on sturdy stems.  While most selections are in the 2' - 3' range, there are taller varieties and compact varieties around 12" or so.  Shasta daisies prefer full sun but can tolerate part sun.  Moist, well-drained soils are ideal and consider removing spent blooms (deadheading) to encourage an extended period of bloom.  There are occasional insect and disease problems with Shasta daisies and they can re-seed in open soils quite readily.  For a clean, white daisy in summer though...they can't be beat.  Modern breeding is creating not only more flower forms (double forms, frills, etc.) but yellow varieties are becoming of more interest.  Some yellow varieties will age to a white although some of the newest yellow selections maintain a yellow/cream appearance even on older flowers.  The images in this blog (all mine) are just a very small portion of what is available out there.  The article below was taken from the two online sources referenced at the bottom.  Very interesting....

Luther Burbank had a great fondness for the wild oxeye daisies that grew under the elm tree in front of his family home. Many years later, the young plant-breeder was inspired to develop these wildflowers for use as garden flowers, and envisioned an ideal daisy: it would have very large pure-white flowers, a long blooming period, and do well both as a cut flower and garden plant. In order to achieve his goals he used four different plants.

He started with the oxeye daisy (Leucanthemum vulgare) and cross-pollinated it with the English field daisy (Leucanthemum maximum) which had larger flowers than the oxeye daisy. The best of these hybrids were then dusted with pollen from the Portuguese field daisy (Leucanthemum lacustre) and their seedlings were bred selectively for six years.

These bloomed nicely, but Burbank wasn’t satisfied yet. He wanted whiter, brighter flowers. He took the most promising of these triple hybrids and pollinated them with the Japanese field daisy (Nipponanthemum nipponicum), a species with small, pure-white flowers. Finally, he got the beautiful large white daisy that he was hoping for. He named it for the lovely glistening Mount Shasta in Northern California. He finally introduced his Shasta daisy hybrids in 1901.

In 1901, Burbank offered his new flowers as a mixed selection, the Shasta Daisy Hybrids, naming them for Northern California's great snow-covered peak.  In 1904, Burbank introduced the first named varieties of Shasta daisy including 'Alaska', 'California' and 'Westralia'.  As late as 1925, he continued to offer new varieties of the flower and further development by plant breeders continues today with over 100 named varieties introduced over the last 112 years.  The Shasta daisy has the longest history of continuous popularity of any hybrid American garden flower.

http://www.wschsgrf.org/articles/lutherburbankseverpopularshastadaisies

http://www.lutherburbank.org/about-us/shasta-daisy

Leucathemum x superbum 'Whoops-A-Daisy'

 Leucathemum x superbum 'Goldfinch'

 Leucathemum x superbum 'Spellbook Stupefy'

 Leucathemum x superbum 'Spellbook Lumos'

 Leucathemum x superbum 'Belgian Lace'

 Leucathemum x superbum 'Luna'

Leucathemum x superbum 'Macaroon'

 Leucathemum x superbum 'Daisy Duke'

Leucathemum x superbum 'Real Dream'

 Leucathemum x superbum 'Real Galaxy'

Leucathemum x superbum 'Real Neat Improved'

 Leucathemum x superbum 'Broadway Lights'

Leucathemum x superbum 'Ice Star'

Leucathemum x superbum 'Banana Cream' above and below

'Monarch Promise' milkweed (Asclepias)

The weather is getting a bit more "winter-like" with dipping temperatures and some colder evenings.  Another warm spell will arrive this weekend but the next seven days look pretty good for running our Holiday Light Show (HLS).  We anticipate big crowds for this event (4 pm - 8 pm) and recommend folks consider purchasing tickets in advance (www.rotarybotanicalgardens.org for information).  The bus shuttle from the Dawson Field parking lot west of the gardens will be in operation over the next seven nights as well.  Big John and Bob K. were out working on some HLS tasks in the gardens including one more power upgrade in an area that we're concerned about recently.  Our indoor volunteers included Dr. Gredler (painting), Ron P. (lights testing and repair), Ron Y. (seal coating a bench) and Dave, Jim and Vern continued with some other carpentry projects.  Maury was in for some errands and Dick H. was around to help as well.  We also saw Mark S., Bill O., Rollie, Dick P., Dr. Yahr, Bill F., Gary and many others including a nice visit from Larry Olsen.  

This past summer I stumbled upon this new, variegated milkweed (Asclepias curassavica) called 'Monarch Promise'.  I was amazed by the foliage alone and these photos (all mine) show just the start of the vivid summer blossoms.  This species is an annual milkweed but will have value for monarchs as a larval food plant with mother monarch laying eggs on the underside of the leaves and the developing caterpillars will nibble on the leaves.  The flowers are also attractive to a wide range of pollinators including monarchs.  Most folks have heard of the correlation between the health of monarch populations and the availability of milkweed.  The ornamental attributes of this plant with green and white leaves that are tinged with orange and pink may attract more gardeners to include this plant in the sunny portions of their garden or container.  Reaching 30" tall, this annual has a long period of summer bloom and if kept happy with adequate moisture, will thrive in most garden settings.  Keep an eye out for aphids as they love the foliage of all milkweeds (Asclepias).  'Monarch Promise' should be available at independent garden centers in 2016.  The monarch photos interspersed throughout the blog were from our excellent photographers of Marsha Mood, Santos McGill and Ken Tapp.

neat public piano in downtown Fort Collins, CO this summer!

African Daisies (Osteospermum)

Today was another wet and overcast day (particularly in the morning) but the weather looks promising for our upcoming seven day stretch of the Holiday Lights Show (HLS) December 17th through the 23rd. There are some additional dates beyond that so check out www.rotarybotanicalgardens.org for more information on the schedule, entertainment and information on pre-purchasing tickets which is highly recommended.  Larry H. worked on some lights and is upgrading an area in the HLS that will look better after his attention.  Dr. Gredler was in for painting and Urban was out pruning in the drizzle.  Maury ran some errands for us and we also saw Dick H., Alan, Gary, Dr. Yahr, Mark S., Art H. and many others.

I love the look of African daisies (Osteospermum ecklonis) which thrive in full sun situations.  Above is the picturesque 'Astra Purple Spoon'!  Native to Africa, these plants are not hardy for us and are considered an annual.  We've come to realize that African daisies require significant attention to maximize their "duration of appeal."  Definitely position them in full sun and they will also thrive in containers.  Adequate water and well drained soils are important too.  While African daisies are promoted as being tolerant of tougher soils, you'll have more flowers on a fuller plant with good soils and frequent (weekly) fertilizing.  Remove (deadhead) spent blossoms as well to encourage more buds to form.  If you have the time to dedicate a little more TLC to your Osteospermum selections, the rewards are amazing as seen in these photos (all of which were taken in mid July this year).

 Osteospermum 'Astra Pink Spoon'

 Osteospermum 'Astra Pink Improved'

 Osteospermum 'Astra Outback Purple'

 Osteospermum '3D Silver'

 Osteospermum '3D Purple'

 Osteospermum '3D Pink'

 Osteospermum '3D Berry White'

 Osteospermum 'Asti Purple'

 Osteospermum 'Doris Daisy Big Yellow'

 Osteospermum 'Cape Daisy Antique Blue'

Osteospermum 'Astra Rose Eye'

 Osteospermum 'Ostica Violet'

 Osteospermum 'Ostica Purple Eye'

 Osteospermum 'Ostica Bronze'

 Osteospermum 'Side Show White'

 Osteospermum 'Summertime Sweet Bronze'

 Osteospermum 'Pink Charme'

 Osteospermum 'Voltage White'

Osteospermum ' Tradewinds Pink'

 Osteospermum 'Ostica Bronze'

Osteospermum '4D Yellow'