''Gaillardia pulchella'' (firewheel, Indian blanket, Indian blanketflower, or sundance) is a North American species of short-lived
perennial
A perennial plant or simply perennial is a plant that lives more than two years. The term ('' per-'' + '' -ennial'', "through the years") is often used to differentiate a plant from shorter-lived annuals and biennials. The term is also wid ...
or
annual
Annual may refer to:
*Annual publication, periodical publications appearing regularly once per year
** Yearbook
** Literary annual
*Annual plant
*Annual report
*Annual giving
*Annual, Morocco, a settlement in northeastern Morocco
*Annuals (band), ...
flowering plant
Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (), commonly called angiosperms. The term "angiosperm" is derived from the Greek words ('container, vessel') and ('seed'), and refers to those plants th ...
s in the
sunflower family.
Description
The branching stem of ''G. pulchella'' is hairy and upright, growing to tall.
The
leaves are alternate, mostly basal, long, with edges smooth to coarsely toothed or lobed. It has a hairy stem, simple or branched near the base, where the leaves are essentially located towards the bottom of the plant.
The pinwheel, daisy-like
inflorescence
An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a Plant stem, stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Morphology (biology), Morphologically, it is the modified part of the shoot of sperma ...
s are 4–6.5 cm in diameter,
vividly colored with red, orange and yellow and is surrounded by 10 to 20 ray florets up to 2 cm;
the
ligule has three lobes. The central disc florets of the flower head tend to be more red-violet, with the outer ray florets being yellow. In one
variety
Variety may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats
* Variety (radio)
* Variety show, in theater and television
Films
* ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont
* ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...
, almost the entire flower is red, with only the barest tips of the petals touched with yellow. It typically blooms from May to July,
but does so practically year-round in some areas.
The fruit is an
achene, almost pyramidal, hairy, and prolonged by a
pappus in length.
Distribution and habitat
It is native to northern Mexico (
Chihuahua,
Coahuila,
Nuevo León,
Sonora,
Tamaulipas
Tamaulipas (), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Tamaulipas ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Tamaulipas), is a state in the northeast region of Mexico; one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the 32 Federal Entiti ...
) and the southern and central United States from
Arizona
Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...
east to
Florida
Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...
and the
Carolinas and north as far as
Nebraska
Nebraska () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by South Dakota to the north; Iowa to the east and Missouri to the southeast, both across the Missouri River; Kansas to the south; Colorado to the sout ...
. It is also naturalized in scattered locations in other parts of the U.S. as well as in
Québec,
Ontario
Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central C ...
,
China, South Africa, and parts of
Central and
South America
South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the sout ...
. The plant generally lives in the sandy plains and deserts of the south of the North American continent. It is common along the roads and prefers sandy soils. It can also grow on vacant lots in urban areas, but generally below above sea level.
The flower has also been introduced to the
Penghu Islands
The Penghu (, Hokkien POJ: ''Phîⁿ-ô͘'' or ''Phêⁿ-ô͘'' ) or Pescadores Islands are an archipelago of 90 islands and islets in the Taiwan Strait, located approximately west from the main island of Taiwan, covering an are ...
in
Taiwan
Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the nort ...
, where it is the County Flower of
Penghu County
The Penghu (, Hokkien POJ: ''Phîⁿ-ô͘'' or ''Phêⁿ-ô͘'' ) or Pescadores Islands are an archipelago of 90 islands and islets in the Taiwan Strait, located approximately west from the main island of Taiwan, covering an area ...
. It is called "天人菊" ("Tianren Daisy") in Chinese.
Ecology
The plant is a larval host to the
bordered patch butterfly (''Chlosyne lacinia'') and the
painted schinia moth (''Schinia volupia''), which feed upon its foliage.
Cultivation
''G. pulchella'' is a hardy plant, not picky about soil, though sandy and well-drained are best. It has a high
drought tolerance
Drought tolerance is the ability to which a plant maintains its biomass production during arid or drought conditions. Some plants are naturally adapted to dry conditions'','' surviving with protection mechanisms such as desiccation tolerance, detox ...
and does best with a dry, hot climate in full sun. Its vibrantly colored flowers can be seen carpeting fields and the sides of highways for miles in the summer to late fall. Favored by honeybees, it produces a dark reddish amber buttery tasting honey. In the garden, the flowers can be
deadheaded to promote further blooming. It self-seeds freely.
Cultivars
![Gaillardia pulchella 'Torch Yellow'](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8c/Gaillardia_pulchella_%27Torch_Yellow%27.jpg)
''Gaillardia pulchella'' (with the perennial ''
Gaillardia aristata'') is the parent of ''
Gaillardia × grandiflora'', a
hybrid
Hybrid may refer to:
Science
* Hybrid (biology), an offspring resulting from cross-breeding
** Hybrid grape, grape varieties produced by cross-breeding two ''Vitis'' species
** Hybridity, the property of a hybrid plant which is a union of two dif ...
, from which several
cultivars have been created. One of these is 'Sundance Bicolor', a perennial double-form with the flower heads having florets of alternating red and yellow. Because of its bright colors, it is well adapted in the sun. Others are 'Goblin' and 'Tangerine'.
Seeds and More: ''Gaillardia'' 'Sundance Bicolor'
/ref>
Culture
It is the state wildflower of Oklahoma.
References
External links
Image Archive of Central Texas Plants
* Ajilvsgi, Geyata. ''Wildflowers of Texas''. Shearer Publishing, revised edition 2003.
Floridata: ''Gaillardia pulchella''
{{Taxonbar, from=Q2701210
pulchella
Flora of Northeastern Mexico
Flora of Southeastern Mexico
Flora of the Great Plains (North America)
Flora of the United States
Flora of the South-Central United States
Flora of the Southeastern United States
Plants described in 1788
Symbols of Oklahoma
Garden plants of North America