Gazanias again?! Where did my current fixation with Gazanias come from? Prior to this year, I didn't give any member of this genus a second glance. Part of the current attraction is the plants' heat and drought tolerance. I'm completely obsessed with California's drought and its impact on the future of my garden at the moment so any plant that tolerates a degree of drought gets extra points straight out of the gate. But there's more to it than that. The new hybrids aren't my grandmother's Gazanias. (Not that either of my grandmothers were gardeners.) They're floriferous eye-catchers. I previously featuredGazania hybrids 'Kiss Frosty White Flame' and 'New Day Yellow' as favorite plant choices. The only strike against them in my book was that the flowers close when the sunlight dims. The new-to-me 'Sunbathers' Gazanias offer the advantage of remaining open even when the sun goes down.*
I discovered Gazania 'Sunbathers Otomi' at Terra Sol Garden Center in Santa Barbara a couple of weeks ago. I was immediately smitten and brought home 3 plants.
A few Angelonia augustifolia, over-wintered from last year but no longer looking their best, were uprooted to make space for the new plants. The flower color picks up the pink of the Cuphea ignea 'Starfire Pink' and the bronze of Phormium 'Dark Delight' behind them.
The new flowers look more red than pink to me when they first open but, as the photo at the top of this post shows, the petal color fades as the flower ages.
The semi-double flowers have a crested center that becomes more bronze as the flower matures. They're approximately 4 inches (10 cm) in diameter when fully open. The plants have the attractive, strappy gray-green foliage of my other Gazanias. They reportedly grow about 8 inches (20 cm) tall and wide. Many growers classify them as half-hardy annuals but they should be short-lived perennials in my climate. In addition to taking heat in stride, they're said to tolerate light frosts.
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For other gardeners' favorite plants, check out Loree's monthly favorites wrap-up at danger garden next Friday.
*Update: Today was mostly cloudy and I noticed that, although the Gazania 'Sunbathers Otomi' flowers don't entirely close, the outer petals do curl around the flower's crested center.
All material © 2012-2015 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party
I discovered Gazania 'Sunbathers Otomi' at Terra Sol Garden Center in Santa Barbara a couple of weeks ago. I was immediately smitten and brought home 3 plants.
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| 'Sunbathers Otomi' in bloom at Terra Sol |
A few Angelonia augustifolia, over-wintered from last year but no longer looking their best, were uprooted to make space for the new plants. The flower color picks up the pink of the Cuphea ignea 'Starfire Pink' and the bronze of Phormium 'Dark Delight' behind them.
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| The new plants in place in the front of the backyard border |
The new flowers look more red than pink to me when they first open but, as the photo at the top of this post shows, the petal color fades as the flower ages.
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| The same flower opening in stages over 3 days |
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| Flowers on the same plant at different stages of bloom |
The semi-double flowers have a crested center that becomes more bronze as the flower matures. They're approximately 4 inches (10 cm) in diameter when fully open. The plants have the attractive, strappy gray-green foliage of my other Gazanias. They reportedly grow about 8 inches (20 cm) tall and wide. Many growers classify them as half-hardy annuals but they should be short-lived perennials in my climate. In addition to taking heat in stride, they're said to tolerate light frosts.
For other gardeners' favorite plants, check out Loree's monthly favorites wrap-up at danger garden next Friday.
*Update: Today was mostly cloudy and I noticed that, although the Gazania 'Sunbathers Otomi' flowers don't entirely close, the outer petals do curl around the flower's crested center.
All material © 2012-2015 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party