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Engelmann's daisy

Engelmannia peristenia · Asteraceae

Engelmann's daisy (Engelmannia peristenia)
Photo: Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA · via Wikimedia Commons

Engelmann's daisy (Engelmannia peristenia) is a perennial herbaceous plant in the Asteraceae family. It is native to North America. USDA records it as hardy in zone 6 and warmer, down to about -3°F.

At a glance

Typeforb-herb USDA
Lifecycleperennial USDA
Native statusnative USDA
Mature height4 ft USDA
Lightfull-sun USDA
Water needmedium USDA
Growth ratemoderate USDA
Soil pH6.5–7.5 USDA
BloomMarch–May USDA
Flower colorOrange USDA
Hardiness zones6 and warmer USDA
Guild layerherb-layer Derived
Nursery availabilityRoutinely Available USDA

USDA quoted from the USDA PLANTS database · Derived computed by a fixed rule from those columns. No value on this page is estimated.

Growing conditions

It needs full sun. USDA rates it as having moderate water needs. Its drought tolerance is rated medium. It will not tolerate waterlogged soil — USDA rates its anaerobic tolerance as none. It is recorded on soils from pH 6.5 to 7.5 — a broad range that spans acidic through mildly alkaline ground. Its cold limit is zone 6.

Size and growth

At maturity it reaches about 4 ft, making it roughly waist to chest height. It grows at a moderate rate.

Bloom period

USDA records a bloom period of March through May. Flowers are orange.

A flowering date, not a pollinator rating.

Foliage, flower and season

Summer foliage is green, coarse in texture. Its flowers are not conspicuous — a plant for form and foliage. It carries conspicuous autumn colour. Its active growth period is spring and fall. USDA rates its lifespan as moderate.

What the site needs to provide

USDA records it across sites receiving 13 to 35 inches of annual precipitation. The low end of that band is genuinely arid, so it has a wide tolerance for dry country. It needs at least 100 frost-free days to finish its season. It roots to at least 20 inches. Fertility requirement: medium.

Propagating it

Seed is the only propagation method USDA lists. Division and cuttings are not listed as options. USDA records no cold-stratification requirement, so seed should germinate without a chilling period. Its seed spreads at a rapid rate. It does not spread vegetatively, so it will stay where you put it.

Resilience and wildlife

Browsing animals find it highly palatable, so expect deer and rabbits to take an interest. Its fire tolerance is rated low. Its growth form is recorded as bunch.

Role in a guild

Herb layer. In a layered planting this is the herbaceous middle — perennials and grasses that fill the space between ground cover and shrubs. The layer is derived by a fixed rule from growth habit and mature height.

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Tags

deciduousdrought-tolerantclay-tolerantnativefull-sun

Related plants

Similar role and hardiness

Where this data comes from

Every value on this page comes from the USDA PLANTS database record for symbol ENPE4, or is computed from those values by a fixed rule. Nothing here is estimated or model-generated. Where USDA publishes no value, this page omits the claim rather than filling the gap.

Read our full data sources and methodology.

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