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Fragrant Gaillardia

Gaillardia suavis

Other common name(s):

Pincushion Daisy, Rayless Gaillardia, Perfumeballs

Family:

Asteraceae (Aster Family)

Plant Ecoregion Distribution Map

Central Great Plains, Chihuahuan Deserts, Cross Timbers, East Central Texas Plains, Edwards Plateau, Gulf Coast Prairies and Marshes, Southern Texas Plains, Southwestern Tablelands, Texas Blackland Prairies
Broken Red Plains, Limestone Plains, Red Prairie
Chihuahuan Basins and Playas, Chihuahuan Desert Grasslands, Chihuahuan Montane Woodlands, Low Mountains and Bajadas, Stockton Plateau
Carbonate Cross Timbers, Eastern Cross Timbers, Grand Prairie, Limestone Cut Plain, Western Cross Timbers
Bastrop Lost Pines, San Antonio Prairie, Southern Post Oak Savanna
Balcones Canyonlands, Edwards Plateau Woodland, Llano Uplift, Semiarid Edwards Plateau
Lower Rio Grande Alluvial Floodplain, Southern Subhumid Gulf Coastal Prairies
Northern Nueces Alluvial Plains, Rio Grande Floodplain and Terraces, Semiarid Edwards Bajada, Texas-Tamaulipan Thornscrub
Canadian/Cimarron Breaks, Caprock Canyons Badlands Breaks, Flat Tablelands and Valleys, Semiarid Canadian Breaks
Northern Blackland Prairie, Southern Blackland Prairie

Plant Characteristics

Growth Form

Herbaceous

Height

1
to
3
ft.

Spread

1
to
3
ft.

Leaf Retention

Deciduous

Lifespan

Perennial

Habitat and Care Requirements

Soil Type(s)

Sand, Loam, Clay, Calcareous, Dry

Light Requirement

Part Shade

Water Requirement

Medium

Native Habitat

Grassland

Bloom and Attraction

Bloom Color

Red, Orange, Yellow

Bloom Season

Spring

Seasonal Interest

Nectar

Wildlife Benefit

Nectar Insects, Bees

Maintenance

Adequate moisture and removal of mature flower heads will encourage flowering until fall. Or let go to seed to provide food for wildlife. Propagation: Seed.

Comments

Blooms March-June. Fragrant gaillardia is a slender, upright, clumped perennial, to 24 in. tall, often forming dense stands. Fragrant, solitary flower rays are few, yellow to orange or red, very short, and soon falling off. Reddish-brown disk flowers are numerous, forming a rounded, pincushion-like head. Leaves are all basal. What it lacks in color is made up in fragrance.
Previous Scientific Name(s): Synonym(s): Agassizia suavis, Gaillardia trinervata

References

1) Griffith, Bryce, Omernick & Rodgers (2007). Ecoregions of Texas. 2) https://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=37412#null, 3) http://bonap.net/TDC/Image/Map?taxonType=Species&taxonId=3164&locationType=County&mapType=Normal, 4) https://www.wildflower.org/plants/result.php?id_plant=GASU, 5) https://portal.torcherbaria.org/portal/taxa/index.php?taxon=Gaillardia+suavis&formsubmit=Search+Terms

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