Oxeye daisy

Sun

Full sun is best; tolerates light partial shade but may flower less and lean.

Water

Water regularly while establishing, then mainly during prolonged dry spells. Avoid persistently wet ground.

Soil

Well-drained soil, including chalky, sandy or loamy ground. Lean to moderately fertile soil suits it better than rich, heavily fertilised soil.

Height

1-3 ft (0.3-0.9 m)

Spread

1-2 ft (0.3-0.6 m), with colonies spreading farther over time

Flowers

Late spring through summer; white rays around a yellow central disc.

Foliage

Dark green, spoon-shaped, toothed basal leaves, with smaller, narrower leaves along the flowering stems. Basal rosettes may remain green through mild winters.

Growth

Fast

Care needed

Medium

• Pollinators
• Drought tolerant
• Cold hardy
• Wildlife
• Low allergen

Northern hemisphere months. In Australia, shift them by six.

Difficulty

Moderate

Toughness

Very tough

Pick your zone, country, light and whether you have pets.

1. Planting day

   1 ft (0.3 m)

2. After 1 year

   1.5 ft (0.45 m)

3. After 2 years

   2 ft (0.6 m)

   full size

About 2 years to full size.

From a typical nursery size, at an average rate for this kind of plant. A rule of thumb, not a forecast.

Cats and dogs

Toxic

Native to

the UK

Invasive in

the US, Canada and Australia

In the garden

Spreads vigorously: plan to contain it.

Growth rate

Fast

• Check local weed restrictions before planting; choose a locally appropriate alternative where it is invasive.
• Water new plants during dry weather until established; established clumps usually need little supplementary water.
• Avoid routine feeding, which encourages floppy growth and excessive competition with neighbouring plants.
• Remove unwanted seedlings early and dig out spreading rhizomes where clumps exceed their space.
• Divide congested clumps in spring or early autumn, only where growing and sharing it is permitted.

Pruning. Remove spent flower heads before seed ripens to limit self-seeding. Cut old flowering stems to the basal rosette after flowering or in autumn; deadheading reduces, but does not eliminate, its spread.

Early spring

Check for seedlings outside the intended area and remove them with their roots.

Spring

Where planting is appropriate and legal, plant or divide clumps and water them in.

Late spring

Check for leaning stems; use discreet supports if needed rather than adding fertiliser.

Summer

Deadhead promptly before seeds develop and water new plants during prolonged dry weather.

Early autumn

Dig out unwanted spreading clumps and remove all accessible rhizomes.

Late autumn

Cut down dead flowering stems, leaving healthy basal leaves intact.

• In UK wildflower meadows within its native range, scattered among fine grasses for an early-summer display.
• In cottage borders with meadow cranesbill and field scabious for loose, informal planting.
• In white-themed borders, where its simple flowers contrast with upright stems and finer foliage.
• In sunny wildlife planting within its native range, providing accessible flowers for small insects.

Garden styles it suits: Cottage garden, Wildflower, Wildlife garden, Pollinator garden, English country and White garden.

Plant it with: Meadow cranesbill, Field scabious, Common knapweed, Bird's-foot trefoil and Quaking grass.

Wildlife: The open flower heads provide pollen and nectar for bees, hoverflies, butterflies and other insects. Outside its native range, dense stands can displace local plants and reduce habitat diversity.

• Unwanted spread: remove flower heads before seed ripens, pull seedlings promptly and dig out rhizomes; do not compost ripe seed heads in a cool home compost heap.
• Floppy stems: grow in full sun, avoid rich feeding and support stems if necessary.
• Slugs and snails on young growth: inspect during damp evenings, hand-pick and remove nearby hiding places.
• Leaf spots or powdery mildew: improve spacing and airflow, water at soil level and remove badly affected foliage.

Treat as potentially toxic to cats, dogs and horses if eaten; foliage and flowers may cause drooling, vomiting or diarrhoea, and contact can cause dermatitis. Human poisoning is not commonly reported, but sap and foliage can irritate sensitive skin, especially in people allergic to daisy-family plants; do not treat it as a food plant.

Where it spreads. Spreads aggressively in grassland, pastures and disturbed ground across much of the United States and Canada, and in southeastern Australia. It is listed or regulated as a weed in jurisdictions including Washington, Colorado and Montana in the US, British Columbia and Alberta in Canada, and parts of New South Wales and Victoria in Australia. Rules vary locally;

• Shasta daisy (Leucanthemum × superbum)

  Usually has larger flower heads and a more robust, bushy habit; many cultivars have broader, fringed or double flowers. Small-flowered forms can be difficult to distinguish without knowing their origin.

• Scentless mayweed (Tripleurospermum inodorum)

  Has finely divided, threadlike leaves and more branched stems, unlike oxeye daisy's broad, toothed basal leaves.

• Common daisy (Bellis perennis)

  Forms a low lawn rosette with much smaller flowers on short, leafless stalks rather than tall, leafy flowering stems.

Leucanthemum comes from Greek words meaning 'white flower', while vulgare means 'common'.

Propagation. Propagates readily from seed and by division in spring or early autumn. Only propagate where it is appropriate and legal; avoid distributing seed or divisions in regions where it is invasive.

Accepted botanical name

Leucanthemum vulgare

In the US and Canada

Introduced in Alaska, Canada, Hawaii, the lower 48 states and St. Pierre and Miquelon.

Native range

Altay, Amur, Austria, Baltic States, Belarus, Belgium, Bulgaria, Buryatiya, Central European Rus, Chita, Czechoslovakia and Denmark.

Measured

Soil pH 5.2 to 7. Average height 21 cm.

Sources: GBIF (CC BY 4.0), USDA PLANTS and Trefle (CC BY 4.0). The care and design notes are LandscapeGPT's own.