PlantFiles: Gazania, Treasure Flower
Gazania rigens

I have absolutely fallen in love with these little guys!!! They bloom like nothing I've ever seen, tolerate abuse & in fact, thrive upon it!! Who could ask for more??? I planted 5 in a large pot in early spring & it seems I'm going to have to thin it out a little already here in May!! However, I can't say I'm disappointed to have extras to spread around the garden where almost nothing else will grow or take hot afternoon sun & little water!! I'd recommend this plant to anyone...beginner or pro!!!

Very plucky and cheerful plants, have them planted in full sun, and mulch seems to keep them moist enough so I don't have to regularly water. They are a in a planter that is elevated, so they don't get overly moist. In these conditions, have needed very little care.

This plant came through the freezing weather we had in Texas in December 2009/January 2010 with no protection at all. It looked a little sad in February but perked up very well and was blooming by April Fool's Day.

I think this perhaps the 'perfect' flowering plant, with its non-stop brilliant sunny flowers and easy to please nature. In Cornwall, UK, zone 9b this plant is only hardy to -4 C (with perfect drainage), because of our wet gloomy climate. Even in Cornwall it usually needs some protection to help it survive the winter except on steep banks near the seafront, but will reward you with some flowers even in winter.

I grow the natural wild form which has orange flowers with black and white 'eye-spots' at the inner part of each ray petal. The wild form is far better as it slowly spreads to form a 4 foot wide 'cushion' smothered with flowers all summer.

It is perhaps the easiest of all plants to grow except for being rather frost-tender - easy from seed, easy from cuttings, disease resistant, always flowers, needs no water,needs no feeding!
In answer to the question below about dead heading them - you don't need to, as they will keep flowering anyway, but just snipping of the flower heads is OK (milky sap can cause irritation). If you let some go to seed, you'll get a lot of seedlings, different - but still attractive.

Beginner Gardener in 8b Baton Rouge, LA. Saw them at the nursery and loved that the blooms were all different. Bought them planted them, all six. Few Blooms. Of course I was over-watering b'c I thought they would like that. Stopped watering them. Didn't like them ....few blooms...lost 2. Really disappointed. Then recently we are having heavy afternoon Thunderstorms. Lots of rain but lots of heat and sun. They have come back. Then I research on Dave's Garden and find out they don't like water. They are lovely - I love them now. They are blooming everyday. How to deadhead them? Do you just take the bloom off ? or cut down to the bottom of the stem? I still have 4 and now they seem to bloom every day. Please advise....

This plant is superb at the front of a sunny, hot border. It's done great for me now in my current windy, fairly xeric garden as well. Just make sure that it's not shaded by taller plants. I can no longer imagine a sunny garden without the gorgeous cheery blooms of gazanias.

As a novice to gardening and just getting started with finding the right plants, I found them to be the easiest, most prolific plant in my garden. Bought at a nursery because the tag said tolerated drought, I have them planted in a dry, sandy, full sun area beside my house with allysum. Turned out quite lovely. Lots of deadheading made tons of flowers.

I got 5 plants in plastic bags from a nursery and they have bloomed incessantly for a month. Very fetching. I agree - overwatering seems to push their performance down. Am glad to know from other notes on this page that they can be perennials. Will that apply in a largely hot, tropical climate such as Delhi, India ?

Gazanias are terrific for a hot, windy and/or exposed site like a balcony, or in my case, a south-facing townhouse patio. The blooms close up at night and on cloudy days, so make sure they are situated in a sunny location. It may take a while for you to get acquainted to their water needs... too much can cause them to rot and too little can cause them to wilt and dry up. They also benefit from frequent deadheading... the blossoms do not last long, so remove them as soon as they begin to fade and new ones will take their place. Follow these suggestions and you will be rewarded with cheerful-looking flowers well into autumn.

I love this little flower, but unfortunately so do all the bunnies! They chomp the pretty flower stems so regularly that I'll have to remove them. I've also had a problem with them dying sporadically; perhaps the bunnies ate the roots? If you don't have rabbits in your area, then you'll love these other wise I'd reccommend something else.

This plant is great for seaside gardens. It is very drought tolerant and comes in a range of colours. This plant multiplies very quickly. Good groundcover. Can look quite unattractive once established but this problem is easily fixed by the process of division. A good plant. pokerboy.

These are great in northern Delaware. They like the sunny, hot, dry spots in my front yard where none but portulacas and alyssum grow! The different color flowers make for a very unusual group planting!

PS - I think there are several cultivars in the pictures. Not all of the pictured plants have a variety of colors per plant. I love all of the cultivars!

Was sent a packet of seeds and only one survived to maturity. Didn't fair too well in it's location (didn't help that my dog stepped on it a few times) so potted it for a while. A couple of weeks ago I replanted it in a new location and now it has a dozen flowers. Very nice now that it likes where it is and am hoping to get seeds from it so can have more of these.

These plants will survive anything. I'd even take issue with the 'water regularly' directive -- they seem to enjoy drought! They are commonly used as ground cover in San Diego, where they provide great beauty with almost no care. I keep them in window boxes with great success. The spent blooms can be quite unattractive, so I deadhead regularly, but other than that they're hardy and enthusiastic little plants.

4/24/04 Jacksonville, FL Amazed to see that each plant bears a variety of flower colors rather than all of a single color. One plant has purple, white and yellow blossoms. These really are "treasures." Will take a photo to send.

Gazanias grow well in windy places and in balcony planters. Their blossoms close in cloudy weather and at night, hence are unsatisfactory as cut flowers. They may, however, be lifted from the garden in the fall and potted for use as ever-blooming house plants.

Makes a good groundcover. Best in hot, dry climates; tolerates drought. Tender annual in zones 2-8, perennial in zones 9-11. Crown rot can occur when overwatered.