Gazanias

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MikeHardman

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Gazanias
« on: February 13, 2012, 11:28:00 PM »
I've had a patch of these smaller Gazanias for some while. Last year they suffered a bit from large moth larvae eating the roots, but they are looking stronger this year so far. They have been in flower for a little while, opening-up shortly after the sun reaches them.
Mike
Geologist by Uni training, IT consultant, Referee for Viola for Botanical Society of the British Isles, commissioned author and photographer on Viola for RHS (Enc. of Perennials, The Garden, The Plantsman).
I garden near Polis, Cyprus, 100m alt., on marl, but have gardened mainly in S.England

Daisy

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Re: Cheerful Gazanias
« Reply #1 on: February 15, 2012, 01:02:45 PM »
They are definitely cheerful Mike. ;D  I must get some more.
I only have one plant. I bought mine in June 2010. I don't know which one it is, but it was in flower when I bought it and has never stopped flowering since!
Daisy :)



Amateur gardener, who has gardened in Surrey and Cornwall, England, but now has a tiny garden facing north west, near the coast in north east Crete. It is 300 meters above sea level. On a steep learning curve!!! Member of both MGS and RHS

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Fleur Pavlidis

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Re: Cheerful Gazanias
« Reply #2 on: February 16, 2012, 11:37:51 AM »
I find that gazanias self-seed very politely - almost always where you would want them to be. I wonder if they're cross-breeding because they come up in all different designs. It could be that I've just forgotten what I bought originally, of course.
MGS member, Greece. I garden in Attica, Greece and Mt Goulinas (450m) Central Greece

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Marilyn

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Re: Cheerful Gazanias
« Reply #3 on: May 22, 2012, 10:45:38 PM »
Hello all,

This week, I finally got round to doing something that has been on my mind since this post came up some months back and made a photo compilation of all the gazanias in our garden. Well, all right, this is not ALL of them but a good selection. I took over a hundred photos, I have an album on Facebook with 70-odd of them on display, all different, all lovely. You should be able to see them if you follow this link:
http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10150974970466138.479195.524116137&type=1&l=6e32f7a396

Let me know if it does not work. For now, here are a few of my faves:
« Last Edit: May 22, 2012, 10:50:27 PM by Marilyn »
I work in hotel and private gardens, promoting sustainable landscape management in the mediterranean climate through the use of diverse, beautiful and appropriate plants. At home, I garden on two balconies containing mostly succulents.

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Marilyn

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Re: Cheerful Gazanias
« Reply #4 on: May 22, 2012, 10:48:55 PM »
And the yellows:
I work in hotel and private gardens, promoting sustainable landscape management in the mediterranean climate through the use of diverse, beautiful and appropriate plants. At home, I garden on two balconies containing mostly succulents.

Daisy

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Re: Cheerful Gazanias
« Reply #5 on: May 23, 2012, 07:16:14 AM »
Marilyn. They made me smile, just by looking at your photos.
Daisy :)
Amateur gardener, who has gardened in Surrey and Cornwall, England, but now has a tiny garden facing north west, near the coast in north east Crete. It is 300 meters above sea level. On a steep learning curve!!! Member of both MGS and RHS

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Alisdair

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Re: Cheerful Gazanias
« Reply #6 on: May 23, 2012, 07:26:40 AM »
Yes, a definite smile factor!
And very helpful, Marilyn, as is that link.
Now that this topic has become so much less month-specific, I'm moving it from the Our Gardens month-by-month section to Perennials.
« Last Edit: May 23, 2012, 07:31:14 AM by Alisdair »
Alisdair Aird
Gardens in SE England (Sussex); also coastal Southern Greece, and (in a very small way) South West France; MGS member (and former president); vice chairman RHS Lily Group, past chairman Cyclamen Society

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ritamax

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Re: Gazanias
« Reply #7 on: May 23, 2012, 11:15:38 AM »
Fantastic, Marilyn, also the Facebook page!!! I never ever thought Gazanias are special, as they grow so badly in Basel getting mildew and leggy, but my first gazania in Spain made my day, too! I didn't even know they are perennials...
Hobbygardener (MGS member) with a rooftop garden in Basel and a garden on heavy clay with sand 600m from seaside in Costa Blanca South (precipitation 300mm), learning to garden waterwise

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Alisdair

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Re: Gazanias
« Reply #8 on: May 23, 2012, 12:01:02 PM »
Yes they are perennials, but in colder climates they are grown as half-hardy annuals, as they don't really stand frosts.
Alisdair Aird
Gardens in SE England (Sussex); also coastal Southern Greece, and (in a very small way) South West France; MGS member (and former president); vice chairman RHS Lily Group, past chairman Cyclamen Society

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Marilyn

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Re: Gazanias
« Reply #9 on: May 23, 2012, 07:11:38 PM »
Happy to hear their cheerful little faces are making you all smile, too! I know just what you mean, Rita, in the UK they were kind of alright but the same problems; I seem to remember they would not start flowering well until rather late in the summer unless lots of glasshouse heat given in their youth; and then the frost would get them just as they were starting to look good. Here, also, it has been easy to get somewhat sniffy about them, given their ubiquity and habit of self-seeding in with the native stuff, but this excercise has really reminded me just how very useful and worthwhile they are.
I work in hotel and private gardens, promoting sustainable landscape management in the mediterranean climate through the use of diverse, beautiful and appropriate plants. At home, I garden on two balconies containing mostly succulents.