Blanket Flower

Blanket flower is a heat-tolerant plant with daisy-like flowers in shades of red, orange, and yellow, and it belongs to the sunflower family. The hybrid Gaillardia x grandiflora is the type most often grown in gardens. It is a long-blooming perennial that flowers from June through October, and its flowers attract butterflies and native bees.

Sowing. Some hybrids and species are easily grown from seed and often self-sow. For perennial types, start seeds indoors about 6 to 8 weeks before the average last frost. Perennial types generally take 4 to 5 months from sowing to flowering.

Transplanting. Set out annual types just after the last spring frost, and set perennials out a bit later.

Annual types. Scatter the seed of annual types on the soil surface where you want them to grow, because they need light to germinate. Mark the area, since the seedlings look like young dandelions.

Cultivars. Some cultivars are vegetative and are propagated from basal cuttings or by division instead of seed.

Light and soil. Grow blanket flower in full sun and well-drained soil. It needs very well-drained soil to survive winter, and it rarely survives winter in heavy soil, so use berms or containers if that is all you have.

Watering and feeding. Once established, blanket flower is drought tolerant and needs little fertilizer. Don’t over fertilize.

Deadheading and pruning. Deadheading is optional, but it keeps the plant tidy and may encourage more blooms. Deadheading also helps keep the plant blooming. Cutting the plants back to 6 inches (15 cm) in late summer may improve winter survival.

Winter. Most plants survive to -20 °F (-29 °C) without crown protection when drainage is good. Mulch or snow cover helps plants in very cold winters.

Blanket flower has few pest problems, but it is susceptible to aster yellows and powdery mildew. Plants tend to be short lived, with an average lifespan of two years, because they bloom so heavily that they wear themselves out. Deer and rabbits usually avoid it, and it is reported to be deer resistant.

Taller types make nice cut flowers. The flowers age into fuzzy seed heads that birds, especially goldfinches, eat, or that fall to the ground and self-sow.

The leaves contain compounds (lactones) that can cause contact dermatitis in some people, so wear gloves when handling the plants.