Grow gilia as a cool-season annual in full sun and soil that drains. Gilia is also called Bird's-eye gilia.
Give it full sun, soil that drains, and little extra water
| Factor | Recommended | Avoid |
|---|---|---|
| Sun | Full sun so the patch stays compact and in bloom | Do not site it in deep shade |
| Soil | Sandy, rocky, or average soil that drains | Do not plant it where water stands after rain |
| Water | Keep the surface moist until seedlings show, then skip extra water | Do not water an established patch on a weekly calendar |
| Kind | Bird's-eye for open cups with a yellow throat; globe gilia for powder-blue puffballs | Do not buy scarlet gilia if you want this annual |
| Feed | Little or no fertilizer in draining ground | Do not dump extra nitrogen that pushes soft growth |
Gilia is a cool-season annual. It wants full sun and soil that drains, then it dies after the seed ripens. Keep the seedbed moist until the plants show, then ease off. Soggy soil around the roots is the primary cause of root rot. [1] [2] bird's-eye gilia is the open-cup annual with a yellow throat and a purple ring. globe gilia is the taller puffball form. Both want the same sun and drain.
Does gilia need full sun?
Yes. Full sun. Deep shade makes a thin, floppy patch with fewer flowers.
How often should I water gilia?
Keep the surface moist until seedlings show. After that, skip extra water unless the plants wilt in a long dry spell, and do not leave the roots in standing water.
Which gilia should I buy?
Buy bird's-eye for open cups with a yellow throat. Buy globe gilia for powder-blue puffballs. Both want sun and drain.
Sow in place in fall or early spring, and barely cover the seed
Sow where the plants will bloom. Starting in trays and then transplanting often fails because the fine roots break. In a mild-winter garden, sow in fall with the rains. Where winters are cold, sow in early spring, about two to three weeks before the last frost, as soon as the soil can be worked. [3] [4]
- Clear a patch of bare ground that drains. Pull weeds so the tiny seedlings are not lost.
- Scatter the seed. Mix it with dry sand if it is too fine to spread evenly. Press it in so it is barely covered, about an eighth of an inch, or leave it on the surface. Buried seed often fails to sprout.
- Keep the surface moist until seedlings show, usually in two to three weeks.
- Thin to about 9 to 15 inches. Do not lift and move a seedling if you can help it. If you started a small plug, plant the whole plug while it is still young.
When should I sow gilia seed?
In fall in a mild-winter garden, or in early spring about two to three weeks before the last frost. Sow on the bed where the plants will bloom.
Can I transplant gilia?
Avoid it. Fine roots usually fail after a move. Sow in place, or plant a very small plug without breaking the roots.
Not scarlet gilia — and not weigela or globe thistle
Scarlet gilia on a tag is Ipomopsis aggregata, a biennial with long tubular red flowers, not this annual. Older lists still call it Gilia aggregata. If the flowers are red tubes, you do not have this genus. Weigela is a spring-blooming shrub, not this wildflower — see How to Grow Weigela. If you searched for a woody hedge and landed here, you want weigela, not gilia.
Garden phlox is Phlox, a perennial with larger clusters — see How to Grow Phlox. Globe thistle is Echinops, a spiny perennial with steel-blue globes — see How to Grow Globe Thistle. Jacob's ladder is Polemonium, a moist-shade perennial in the same family — see How to Grow Jacob's Ladder. If the tag says bird's-eye or globe gilia and the plant is a spring annual with ferny leaves, you still have gilia.
Is this scarlet gilia?
No. Scarlet gilia is Ipomopsis, a biennial with red tubes. Bird's-eye and globe gilia are annuals with open cups or powder-blue puffballs.
Is this weigela?
No. Weigela is a woody shrub. Gilia is a cool-season annual you sow in place in sun that drains.
Deadhead some flowers, or leave seed so the patch returns
The plants die after the seed ripens, often as summer heat arrives. A patch returns only if some flowers are left to set seed and that seed can hit bare ground. You can pick spent heads if you want a longer bloom, then stop so later flowers can drop seed.
- Pick spent flowers while you still want more bloom. Do not strip every stalk if you want seedlings next year.
- Leave later flowers to ripen. Seed needs to fall on bare soil, not on a thick mulch.
- Leave the small plants that show in fall or early spring. They are next season's patch, not weeds.
Will it come back next year?
The plants die after seed. A patch returns if seed can hit bare soil. Thick mulch blocks the seedlings.
Should I deadhead gilia?
You can pick spent flowers if you want a longer bloom. Leave some heads if you want the patch to return from seed.
Sow the next patch on ground that drains, and skip extra water once the seedlings are up.
FAQ
Can I grow gilia in a pot?
A draining pot can hold a few plants on a patio. Use a lean mix, keep it in full sun, water when the mix is dry, and empty the saucer. A meadow strip in the ground holds a patch better.
Do you list Felicitas or other subspecies?
No. This catalog holds bird's-eye gilia and globe gilia. Named mixes and subspecies of globe gilia are other packets. Treat open cups as bird's-eye and puffballs as globe gilia.
Is Queen Anne's thimble Queen Anne's lace?
No. Queen Anne's thimble is a shop name for globe gilia. Queen Anne's lace is wild carrot, a different plant.
Can I start it indoors?
Sow where the plants will bloom. The fine roots do not like a move, so trays and later transplanting often fail.
Recommended plants
References
- [1] NC State Extension Gardener -
https://plants.ces.ncsu.edu/plants/gilia-capitata/ - [2] Utah State University Western Native Plants -
https://cwelwnp.usu.edu/westernnativeplants/plantlist_view.php?id=92&name=giliacapitata - [3] Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center -
https://www.wildflower.org/plants/result.php?id_plant=GITR2 - [4] West Coast Seeds -
https://www.westcoastseeds.com/blogs/wcs-academy/grow-birds-eyes-gilia
More first-season notes by plant are gathered in How to Grow Guides.
Updated: Reviewed by Bosquelle Editors