Daisy



English or true daisy (Bellis perennis)


Scientific classification





Kingdom:

Plantae



Class:

Magnoliopsida



Order:

Asterales



Family:

Asteraceae





Species



See text



Daisy is the common name for a large number of dicotyledonous flowering plants within the Asteraceae (or Composite) family, and in particular is associated with the true, common, or English daisy (Bellis perennis) and the oxeye daisy (Leucanthemum vulgare, sny. Chrysanthemum leucanthemum). Daisies are characterized by the star-shaped flower head, consisting of a densely packed cluster of numerous, small, individual flowers (florets). Both of these species have a center composed of yellow disc florets surrounded by ray florets with long, white petals. In addition, the entire family sometimes is known as the daisy family.
The beauty of the flower head of daisies has made them a favorite of many people and a popular name of girls. They also provide food for pollinating insects, herbivorous insects, and even people consume their leaves. However, the introduction of the English daisy and oxeye daisy to non-native environments also has led to their being considered invasive species, which can be difficult to control or eradicate.

Contents

1 Overview and description
2 Partial list of species with the common name daisy
3 Common daisy
4 Oxeye daisy
5 References
6 Credits


Overview and description
 Yellow daisy (Rudbeckia hirta), also known as black-eyed Susan, has yellow ray florets circling a brown, domed center of disc florets.
The daisy family, also known as the aster or sunflower family, is classified variously as Asteraceae or Compositae. The name "Asteraceae" is derived from the type genus Aster and refers to the star-shaped flower head of its members, epitomized well by the English or true daisy, Bellis perennis. "Compositae," an older but still valid name (McNeill et al. 2006), means "composite" and refers to the unique inflorescence (described below).
The daisy family is the the largest family of flowering plants in terms of number of species. According to the Royal Botanical Gardens of Kew, the family comprises more than 1,600 genera and 23,000 species. These are dicotyledonous flowering plants. In addition to the daisy, other well-known members of the family include lettuce, chicory, globe artichoke, safflower, dandelion, chrysanthemum, ragwort, and sunflower.
Plants belonging to the Asteraceae share all the following characteristics (Judd et al. 1999):

The inflorescence is an involucrate capitulum (flower head)
Tubular/disc florets are actinomorphic, ligulate/ray florets are zygomorphic
Anthers are syngenesious, that is, with the stamens fused together at their edges, forming a tube
The ovary has basal arrangement of the ovules
One ovule per ovary
The calyx (sepals) of the florets are modified to form a pappus, a tuft of hairs, which often appears on the mature fruit
The fruit is an achene
In the essential oils Sesquiterpenes are present, but iridoids are lacking.
The most common characteristic of all these plants is an inflorescence or "flower head:" A densely packed cluster of numerous, small, individual flowers, usually called "florets" (meaning "small flowers"). Daisies typically have two kinds of florets. The outer perimeter of a flower head, like that of the English daisy and the oxeye daisy, is composed of florets possessing a long strap-like petal, termed a ligule; these are the ray florets. The inner portion of the flower head (or disc) is composed of small flowers with tubular corollas; these are the disc florets.
It is thought that the name "daisy" is a corruption of "day's eye," because the whole head of the common daisy closes at night and opens in the morning. Chaucer called it "eye of the day."

Partial list of species with the common name daisy
The name daisy is associated with a very large number of flowers within Asteraceae, spanning a wide number of genera. The following is only a partial listing.





Aster amellus European Michaelmas daisy
Bellis annua Annual daisy
Bellis azorica Azores daisy
Bellis bernardii Corsican daisy
Bellis Habanera Quilled English daisy
Bellis perennis Daisy, common daisy, English daisy
Bellis rotundifolia Spanish daisy
Bellis sylvestris Southern daisy
Chaetopappa asteroides Arkansas leastdaisy
Chaetopappa bellidifolia Whiteray leastdaisy
Chaetopappa bellioides Manyflower leastdaisy
Chaetopappa effusa Spreading leastdaisy
Chaetopappa hersheyi Guadalupe leastdaisy
Chaetopappa imberbis Awnless leastdaisy
Chaetopappa parryi Parry's leastdaisy
Chrysanthemum coronarium Crown daisy
Erigeron aurantiacus Orange daisy
Erigeron bellidiastrum Western daisy fleabane
Erigeron chrysopsidis Golden daisy/fleabane
Gerbera anandria Ghostly daisy
Gerbera aurantiaca Hilton daisy
Gerbera jamesonii Barberton daisy, Gerbera daisy
Leucanthemum integrifolium Entire-leaf daisy
Leucanthemum lacustre Portuguese daisy
Leucanthemum maximum Shasta daisy
Leucanthemum nipponicum Nippon daisy
Leucanthemum x superbum Shasta daisy
Leucanthemum vulgare Oxeye daisy
Microseris lanceolata yam daisy
Osteospermum jucundum South African daisy



Perityle aglossa Bluff rock daisy
Perityle ajoensis Ajo rock daisy
Perityle congesta Grand Canyon rock daisy
Perityle coronopifolia Crowfoot rock daisy
Perityle emoryi Emory's rock daisy
Perityle incana Guadalupe Island rock daisy
Perityle intricata Delicate rock daisy
Perityle inyoensis Inyo rock daisy
Perityle megalocephala Nevada rock daisy
Perityle microglossa Short-rayed rock daisy
Perityle quinqueflora Five-flowered rock daisy
Perityle saxicola Roosevelt Dam rock daisy
Perityle specuicola Alcove rock daisy
Perityle villosa Hanaupah rock daisy
Townsendia alpigena Wyoming Townsend daisy
Townsendia annua Annual Townsend daisy
Townsendia aprica Last chance Townsend daisy
Townsendia condensata Cushion Townsend daisy
Townsendia exscapa Stemless Townsend daisy
Townsendia florifer Showy Townsend daisy
Townsendia gypsophila Gypsum-loving Townsend daisy
Townsendia incana Hoary Townsend daisy
Townsendia leptotes Common Townsend daisy
Townsendia nuttalli Nuttall's Townsend daisy
Townsendia parryi Parry's Townsend daisy
Townsendia scapigera Tufted Townsend daisy
Townsendia smithii Black Rock Townsend daisy
Townsendia spathulata Sword Townsend daisy
Townsendia texensis Texas Townsend daisy


Common daisy
 Bellis perennis
Bellis perennis is a common European species of daisy, often considered the archetypal species of that name. Since related plants also share the name "daisy," the name of this species is sometimes qualified as common daisy, English daisy, true daisy, or lawn daisy. It is native to western, central and northern Europe. The species is widely naturalized in North America, where it is considered an invasive weed.
The common daisy is a herbaceous plant with short creeping rhizomes and small rounded or spoon-shaped evergreen leaves two to five centimeters long. It grows close to ground. The flower heads are two to three centimeters in diameter, with white ray florets (often tipped red) and yellow disc florets. These flowerheads are produced on leafless stems two to ten centimeters (rarely 15 centimeters) tall.
The common daisy is not affected by mowing, regrowing quickly, and is therefore often considered a weed on lawns, though many also value the appearance of the flowers.
The common daisy has a number of uses. Several cultivars and hybrids have been selected for aesthetic purposes with much larger flower heads, up to five to six centimeters diameter and with light pink to purple-red ray florets. Bellis perennis has astringent properties and has been used in folk medicine as well (Howard 1987). The green leaves are edible and can be part of culinary dishes, but should be consumed moderately.

Oxeye daisy
 White oxeye daisy flower (Leucanthemum vulgare)
Leucanthemum vulgare (synonym Chrysanthemum leucanthemum), known as the oxeye daisy, marguerite, moon daisy, or dog daisy, is a widespread flowering plant native to Europe and the temperate regions of Asia. Just one of a number of plants to be called by the common name daisy, the oxeye daisy is is a perennial prostrate herb with a small flower head (not larger than 5 centimeters) that consists of about 20 white ray florets and numerous yellow disc florets, growing on the end of the stem. The stem is mostly unbranched and sprouts laterally from a creeping rootstock.
The leaves are darkgreen on both sides. The basal and middle leaves are petiolate, obovate to spoon-shaped, and serrate to dentate. The upper leaves are shorter, sessile and borne along the stem. The oxeye daisy produces an abundant number of flat seeds without pappus. It spreads also vegetatively by rooting underground stems.
The oxeye daisy is a typical meadow flower, growing in a variety of plant communities such as dry fields, meadows, but also under scrubs, open-canopy forests, and waste places. It thrives in a wide range of conditions and prefers heavy and damp soils.
The oxeye daisy was introduced in parts of North America, Australia, and New Zealand, where it is now a common weed displacing native plant species in some areas. It is difficult to control or eradicate, since a new plant can regenerate from rhizome fragments. However, in North Carolina it is planted on roadsides by the highway department (Barringer 2007).

ReferencesISBN links support NWE through referral fees
Barringer, F. 2007. Wildflowers find favor with highway gardeners. New York Times August 29, 2007.
Howard, M. 1987. Traditional Folk Remedies: A Comprehensive Herbal. London: Century. ISBN 0712617310.
Judd, W. S., C. S. Campbell, E. A. Kellogg, and P. F. Stevens. 1999. Plant Systematics: A Phylogenetic Approach. Sunderland, MA: Sinauer Associates. ISBN 0878934049.
McNeill, J., F. R. Barrie, H. M. Burdet, et al. 2006. International Code of Botanical Nomenclature. International Association of Plant Taxonomy (IAPT). Retrieved November 17, 2008.

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