Gazanias (Gazania rigens) are warm-weather (Zones 9 – 11) summer-flowering herbaceous perennials in the daisy family.   They bring vibrant colors (oranges, yellows, pinks, and reds) to the home garden.   They also called African daisies since they are native to South Africa.

In mild climates, gazanias are considered invasive, but in the colder climates of the north, they are very unlikely to be a problem.

Gazanias can be grown from seed indoors (10 weeks before transplanting outdoors) or seeded directly into the soil after the last frost date (we collect seeds in the fall).

Gazanias prefer full sun locations and they are not particularly demanding in terms of soil or watering, but should be watered before the soil dries too much and they can be fertilized in the blooming season.   We deadhead them, as needed.   They can be overwintered, but since propagation is easy (or we can just buy packs), we just dig them up after a killing frost.   We have to decide the balance of work, care, space, and time and saving gazanias falls lower on the list than other higher priority plants.

Since gazanias grow to to 15 – 35 cm, we usually plant them in the middle of a border, between a low-growing annual and a taller annual.  We value gazanias, zinnias, marigolds as reliable annuals in our summer gardens.

Shared here are some photos from our home garden in a Google Photos Album (link):