Asteraceae-Landscape Plants For South Florida

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Asteraceae

Composite Family, Daisy Family, Aster Family

By Art Liebovit and George Rogers

One of the largest plant families, found worldwide. Although sometimes woody, even occasional trees, most Asteraceae are herbaceous to subshrubby. Characterized primarily by having “false flowers” known as heads or capitula comprised of numerous small flowers. The head is subtended by bracts called phyllaries. The flowers have usually 5 sepals, 5 petals, 5 stamens and 2 carpels with an inferior ovary. They are modified into ray flowers (resembling petals around the outside of the head) and into disk flowers (small flowers toward the center of the head). Different species have different combinations of ray and disk flowers, sometimes one type only. This is the family of argyranthemums, artichokes, asters, chrysanthemums, dahlias, daisies, gaillardias, gazannias, gerberas, lettuce, marigolds, osteospermums, saltbushes, and sunflowers.

Key to Important Asteraceae in South Florida Landscaping

1. Plants rampant vines with orange flowers…Pseudogynoxys chenopodioides (Mexican Flamevine)

1. Plants groundcovers, perennials, or annual herbs…2

2. Stems bending back to the ground, or prostrate, rooting at points of contact...Helianthus debilis (Beach Sunflower) (Flowering heads yellow with black centers; leaf blades simple, pubescent)

2. Stems erect…3

3. Stem semiwoody; flowering heads pure yellow and with the diameter of the central disc about equal to the lengths of the “petals” (ray flowers); plant strongly rhizomatous…Borrichia frutescens (Sea Oxeye) (Leaf blades simple, glaucous)

3. Stem herbaceous; flowering heads usually other than yellow, or if yellow, the ray flowers longer than the diameter of the central disc; plants not rhizomatous…4

4. Leaves evenly pinnately lobed…9

4. Leaves entire or, if lobed, the lobes uneven and pointy-tipped, irregular…5

5. Leaf blades silvery or grayish, especially on the undersides…Gazania

5. Leaf blades green…6

6. Leaf blades with irregular coarse teeth (or small irregular lobes); flowering heads to 7” in diameter…Gerbera

6. Leaf blades with entire margins or with small teeth…7

7. Leaf blades spoon-shaped or spatula shaped….Osteospermum

7. Leaf blades elliptic, oblong, or lance-shaped…8

8. Flowering heads with bicolor yellow and red ray flowers, the centers brownish…Gaillardia

8. Flowering heads single-colored, or if multi-colored, not as above…Zinnia

9. Flowering heads white, pink, or yellow, usually not ruffly and doubled…Argyranthemum (Marguerite Daisies)

9. Flowering heads orange or yellow, usually doubled…Tagetes (Marigolds)