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Dimorphotheca ecklonis
Dimorphotheca ecklonis, also known as Cape Marguerite, African daisy, Van Staden's River daisy, Sundays River daisy, white daisy bush, blue-and-white daisy bush, star of the veldt, Kaapse magriet, jakkalsbos, Vanstadensrivier madeliefie, or Sondagsrivier madeliefie is a perennial ornamental plant that is native to South Africa. It features white ray florets and a dark blue centre and is part of the Asteraceae family. The species is named after Christian Friedrich Ecklon, a Danish botanical collector who explored the flora of the Cape in the early 1800s. It is regarded as an invasive plant in parts of Australia, particularly Victoria and Western Australia.
Dimorphotheca ecklonis can be grown as a perennial but based on the temperature swings of the local climate it can be grown as an annual plant. The peak flowering period is in spring, although some flowers will last through summer. The plants grow fast and thrive best in full sun, in poor to moderately fertile, well-drained, sandy soil.
It is widely used as an ornamental plant in pots and beddings. In places, such as Australia, where it has become invasive the white coloured flowers grow as groundcover plants.
When found naturally the plants can be seen growing at the base of cliffs or on steep hills. It is native to a small area in the Eastern Cape, South Africa, around Uitenhage and Humansdorp and is found on wet grass and in river beds at altitudes up to 300 meters (980 ft). It prefers subtropic biomes but has been introduced into the Azores, California, Mauritius, New South Wales, Queensland, Réunion, Spain, Tunisia, Victoria, and Western Australia. It has become popular in Europe in places such as Sicily, Italy.
Pointed Rain Daisy · Eastern Cape Rain Daisy · Longstem Rain Daisy · Chrysanth Rain Daisy · Bride's Bouquet · Dimorphotheca dregei · Dimorphotheca fruticosa · Osteospermum · Mountain Rain Daisy · African Oxeye · Weather prophet · Glandular Cape marigold
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Dimorphotheca ecklonis by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts are shared under the same licence.
Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.
