Grow and Care for Swan River Daisy

Grow Swan River daisy in full sun, in soil that drains. Swan River daisy is Brachyscome iberidifolia. Shops also print Brachycome, the older spelling. A woody blue daisy bush on a tag is usually kingfisher daisy, and a large Cape daisy is African daisy.

Give it full sun, soil that drains, and cooler nights in heat

Swan River daisy is Brachyscome iberidifolia, a compact annual with gray-green, finely cut leaves and small fragrant daisy heads. Give it full sun and soil that stays moist but still drains. It blooms best where nights stay cool. In a hot, humid summer the species planting fades, and named hybrids usually hold up longer. [1] Let the top inch of soil dry, then water. A weekly wet pot rots the roots faster than a short dry spell you can correct. This is a frost-tender annual in most U.S. gardens, not a shrub you carry through winter in the ground.

Plant after frost, at the same depth as the pot

Wait until frost has passed, then set nursery plants or hardened seedlings into full sun. Dig a hole the same size as the pot, set the crown even with the surrounding soil, and water until the new roots hold. [2]

1. Wait until frost has passed, then plant in full sun on soil that drains.
2. Dig a hole the same size as the pot, and set the crown even with the surrounding soil.
3. Space plants about 8 inches apart so the mounds can meet without sitting wet against each other.
4. Water well at planting, then let the top inch dry before you water again.

Grow it in a pot that drains

A pot or hanging basket with a hole in the bottom holds the fine mound on a patio. Use a potting mix that drains, and water when the top of the mix is dry, because a small pot dries faster than a bed. This is an outdoor bedding plant, not a houseplant. After frost, empty the pot and start again next spring.

1. Choose a pot or hanging basket with a hole in the bottom.
2. Fill it with a potting mix that drains, and plant at the same depth as the nursery pot.
3. Pinch the growing tip while the plant is still small so it branches in the pot.
4. Water when the top of the mix is dry, and empty water that sits in a saucer.

Pinch young tips, then shear when the first flush fades

Pinch the growing tip while the plant is still small so it branches instead of stretching. The first flush of one-inch heads can cover the leaves and then fade after a few weeks. Shear the planting back when bloom slows, or trim spent stems in late summer, so a second flush can open in cooler weather. [3]

1. Pinch the growing tip while the plant is a few inches tall, before it is covered in flower.
2. Snip spent heads as they fade if you want a tidy mound, or wait and shear the whole plant when the first flush is over.
3. Shear the planting back when bloom slows so new stems can rise for a later show.
4. After frost, pull the spent annual. This is not a woody shrub prune.

Sow after frost, barely covered

Start a tray indoors about six to eight weeks before your last frost, or sow outside after frost has passed. Press the fine seed onto moist mix and cover it only lightly. Keep the mix at about 65 to 70°F until seedlings appear, usually in one to three weeks. A later sowing every few weeks can stretch the show through a mild summer. [4]

1. Sow indoors six to eight weeks before last frost, or sow outside after frost has passed.
2. Press the seed onto moist mix and cover it only lightly. Do not bury it deep.
3. Keep the mix bright and evenly moist at about 65 to 70°F until seedlings appear, usually in one to three weeks.
4. Harden the seedlings off, then set them out after frost at the same depth as the pot.

Root a cutting from a plant you kept

A named hybrid you want to keep is often started from a stem cutting, because seed of a named kind may not come back true. Take a three- to four-inch non-flowering stem, strip the lower leaves, and stick the cut in a mix that drains. Keep it moist until a gentle tug meets resistance, then grow it on as you would a seedling. Seed is still the usual way to raise a mixed annual bed.

1. Take a three- to four-inch non-flowering stem from a healthy plant.
2. Strip the lower leaves and stick the cut in a mix that drains.
3. Keep the mix moist, out of harsh midday sun, until a gentle tug meets resistance.
4. Harden it off and plant it after frost, at the same depth as the pot.

Not an African daisy — and not a kingfisher daisy

A large Cape daisy on a U.S. tag is usually African daisy. That plant makes a wider, fleshy clump with bigger heads, not a fine 12-inch annual mound. This plant is Swan River daisy. See How to Grow African Daisy if the tag says Osteospermum, Cape daisy, or African daisy.

A woody blue daisy bush sold as Swan River daisy is usually kingfisher daisy, Felicia amelloides. That plant is a South African shrublet, not this Australian annual. Cut-leaf daisy, also called rock daisy, is Brachyscome multifida. That is a perennial clump we do not list, not a second pack of this seed annual. Brachycome on a packet is still this genus, the older spelling of Brachyscome.

Set the next plant after frost, in full sun on soil that drains, with the crown even with the soil, then pinch the young tips and shear when the first flush fades.