Gaillardia Oranges and Lemons

Oranges & Lemons is one of the big successes in recent perennial introductions. It has the flaring trumpet-like petals found in some other new varieties, but the colors are the thing--this one is a knockout in the garden.

The Gaillardias are one of the great glories of American wildflowers, carpeting whole landscapes to the horizon in the plains states and the west. The natives are the famous yellow and white pinwheel bi-colors. In our wildflower seed department, we sell the much-loved annual, Indian Blanket, and the native perennial as well, G. aristata, often called Blanket Flower.

But hybridizers are always anxious to improve native plants, no matter how beautiful they may be. And in this case, they have. Goblin is one of the oldest, and still probably the most popular hybrid, with very large flowers and a long bloom season.

Many other newer hybrids emphasize one color or the other--the red or the yellow. And in very recent years, even the flower form has changed. With Fanfare, we were introduced to Gaillardias with tubular ray petals, each one a miniature flaring trumpet. Now that form is expanded with the exciting new Commotion group. And the stunning new Dakota Reveille has turned the whole flower into a fluffy ball of petals.

All are great garden perennials, tough as oaks, great for color, and as dependable as they come.