Three New Gazanias

We discussed gazania a few years back, but we want to revisit it. Gazania presents us with the true “treasure flowers” of summer in the comfortable and familiar daisy shape. Although gloriously dramatic, the plant itself is not daisy-like—gazenia likes to grow in mounded, compact shapes with a silvery fuzz on the leaves. Here, the flower is the reason to buy the plant—it really delivers on the “wow factor”. The Kiss Series has been particularly effective at color coverage—an issue we care about deeply at Diefenbacher—so this year we’ve added three new Kiss cultivars to our Gazania Collection.

Gazania ‘Kiss Frosty White Flame’

Swords of red cut through white petals with a daisy yellow center. We like it in both mixed containers and as a single plant filling a pot. Flowers measure about 2–3 inches.

Gazania ‘Kiss Orange Flame’

Orange flowers have yellow margins. Nicely doubled petals surround the dark brown ring around the daisy center. This cultivar mixes a little bit of a rudbeckia look into the bloom.

Gazania ‘Big Kiss™ Yellow Flame’

Like ‘Frosty White Flame’, this variety has swords of red cutting through yellow petals. The flower is probably the largest one in our Gazania Collection. It measures about 4 inches when the bloom is mature and delivers a big plate of color.

Gazania stems are sturdy, so it can definitely go into the cut flower garden; however, it has that quirk of closing up at night and on cloudy days. Stems will easily fit into short vases because gazania grows about 8–10 inches high and the plants stay mounded and compact, growing up into the space they are assigned. It’s a neat and tidy choice for gardens that like to stay clean.

All gazanias bloom throughout the summer and are strong sun lovers. They can handle dry weather, but they are not extended drought plants—hit them with water when the rains don’t come. In the fall, they will continue to bloom and can even handle a light frost that might tiptoe across the tops of the plants—that surprised us. This is a product you can consider for fall color sales as well.

Gazenia is particularly tolerant of poorer soils. It’s a good choice for areas where other plants fail due to soil abuse—around recent construction, for example—or soil exhaustion caused by the wear-and-tear from heavy feeders.