Gerbera Daisy
Grow Gerbera Daisy
Gerbera daisy (Gerbera Jamesonii) also known as African daisy, Barberton Daisy, and Transvaal Daisy originates from South Africa, Madagascar to South American and tropical Asia.
Gerbera daisy is known for its bright vivid colors and large daisy-like flowers that grow on bare stems 10-18 inches tall. It is hardy in zones 9-10 and usually grown as an annual or tender perennial that can be brought inside during the winter. This eye-catching flower attracts bees and butterflies. In a NASA study for indoor air improvement, Gerbera proved effective in removing chemical vapors and toxic gases.* 
Soil and location
Plant gerbera daisy in a sunny location protected from the hot afternoon sun. Full sun is best for more flower production. It should be planted in rich well-drained soil when the night temperatures are in the 40’s at night. As with many plants, they don’t like wet, soggy soil. If you have clay soil, one that holds moisture and stays wet, you will need to amend the soil by adding organic material such as peat moss, compost,etc. to improve drainage. If the soil cannot be amended, then a raised bed or container is suggested. Plant the crowns above the soil level, too deep will invite crown rot.
Care
Water early in the day and allow it to dry slightly between watering. Avoid overhead watering. Improper watering and poor drainage will lead to problems such as crown rot and poor flower production.
Feed monthly with a 1/2 strength balanced fertilizer and every two weeks during the flowering period (spring and summer). Maintain the plant by removing spent flowers and old leaves.
Propagation
Gerbera daisy can be started from seed 10-20 weeks before the last frost. No pretreatment is required. After collection, seeds should be germinated within 1-2 months. They may even reseed themselves during the summer. Keep in mind that plants grown from seed may differ from the parent plant. You can also divide the plant in the spring or take basal cuttings in the summer and dip in rooting hormone.
Cut flower
Not only is Gerbera daisy attractive in the garden or as a potted plant; they are also a favorite cut flower. The long vase life of up to 14 days and a myriad of available colors make this a favorite for floral designers. Hybridizers have produced hundreds of varieties with almost every color available except for blue and purple.
*Eco Friendly House Plants/Wolverton
Problems: Thrips, leafminer, spider mite, caterpillar, botrytis, powdery mildew, fungal rot and crown rot.
After I brought a large pot of beautiful red Gerber Daisy’s inside for the winter, within a month we began seeing tiny black spots and white spots that resembled white sand. My wife complained to me about them, so, I took them out on side on the porch and looked at them under a magnifier glass and LED LIGHT. I found that if I disturbed them, they will move. What sort of bug or mite, are these things? I did spray them with neam oil. What is it I do not know about these things? And, if it is bug and eggs, will they get on our Orchids which are just a few feet away? Ken
I bought 80 plugs and transplanted them into 6 inch pots with peat and vermiculite. The plugs have gone from 4-6 leaves to 6 -12 leaves in five weeks and quite a bit larger. All is good so far. Do I have any chance of continued success this summer in the subtropics with day time temps being 92-95 degrees and evening temps being 76 – 82. I plan on leaving the daises in their pots so I can assist the plants if they receive to much rain/water or to avoid afternoon sun. Any and all shared experience would be greatly appreciated!
Why do the flowers become deformed/ misshapen? What can I do to avoid it?
Need advice..
I have bought some gerbera seeds and when it is time to plant, i want them in pots. I dont know which size pots to buy and how many i can put in one single pot. Do you have any suggestions?
Hi Kayla
see starting gerbera from seed
I had bought african daisy seeds at the end of winter. I see them taking root and 2 leaves come out but no progress after that. I have kept it in a location where there is full sunlight at least 6-8 hours in a day and water it twice a week.
What could be the cause
I bought this plant, healthy and beautiful in its pot. I put it in the shade to avoid too much sun. When the still-air temperature reached 95F the plant collapsed. Flowers and leaves. I put it in the refrigerator for an hour, it jumped back up. The next day, in the shade, at 100F the plant died again. I think it is a rip-off to sell this plant in So. California. It cannot stand even the shade if the air temp is too high. A check of So. African temps show it seldom gets above 98F there. To those folks in the East who put their Gerbera in the sun, your sun is NOT like our Calif sun!
Gerbera Daisies are grown commercially in Southern California along the coast north of San Diego.
I had this issue as well in south Louisiana! I found that watering it well in the morning helps it to withstand the sun and heat much better! Haven’t had the issue since and I have 3 of them.
Today I seen a daisy with two heads….
How does this happen?
Hello
My son gave me a Gerbera Daisy plant for my birthday. They were very healthy but he had the bright idea to put them in direct sunlight here in AZ gets in the 100 degrees:( so the flowers are flopped over how can I help them I brought them inside and gave the water mixed with plant food and used plastic spoons to hold the flowers up. Please help my babies don’t know what else to do.
Hello,
My Gerbera daisy’s flowers are all wilting. Its fully grown flowers first died after a few weeks, which I figured was normal, but now all the baby flowers have wilted. I have it indoors near a glass sliding door, at about 75 degrees or cooler. I had taken it outside a couple weeks ago but the 80-90 degree temperatures caused the entire plant to wilt, so I brought it back indoors. Its leaves are bright green and look healthy. It is also growing some new leaves. I was having a problem with fungus gnats and have covered the top of the daisy’s soil with sand to block any adults from coming out of the soil or going in to lay eggs. So my questions to you are: should I repot? (It was just repotted, but may have been re-infested and at this point I am going through potting soil like crazy.) Is it better for it to get more sun and humidity outside or kept indoors at room temperature? Thank you for your help!
I have a red gerbera daisy, and one of it’s blooms right now is a very pale yellow. The other blooms on it are all red. Any idea why this one flower is the pale yellow? :S
I have had Gerbera’s since I moved into my new home 9 yrs. ago. They are in the front flower bed and most have come back every year. This year I reworked the flower bed and planted some more Gerbera’s. Something is going down into the center of the newly planted ones and eating all the root. I have replanted 3 times and each time the root has been completly eaten leaving the leaves. Now that i have given up on replacing the new ones, something has started eating the ones that have been established.
Hi I got my first potted yellow Gerbera daisy a few months ago and it was doing well for a few days untill it has lost all the flowers and some of its leaves. Since then, a few more leaves have come out of the crown but still no flowers.
My biggest concern is my gerbera’s weak &long stems. I also do not think the colour of its foilage is dark enough. The leaves are bright green.
I have been watering this plant weekly and never used any fertiliser. It is always kept indoor and I would like to know how I can encourage this plant to have short sturdy leaves and strong flowers.
Your advice would be highly appreciated!!
Short flower stem
hi, i bought red gerbera daisy,i live in uae,here weather is quiet hot,when i boughti from nursery,it has two beautiful blooms with tall stem,after few days i shift it to bigger pot with it crown above the soil, it is kept under shade with filtered sun light, after this it bloomed once but its stem is short and the petals are not that bright and few were missing too, it wilted in few days, now i have another bud in making but i am afraid it will also not have tall stem, why its getting shorter stem and short bloom
color change
Have you ever heard of gerbera daisies changing color? Last year I had two yellow plants and one red red plant. This year one is yellow and two are red!
hi i would like to know, if it’s true that Gerberas can aid sleep if kept in a bedroom, thank you from Carol.
Hi, I live in the sub tropics Australia and currently it’s spring here . All of my Pottered Gerberas have leaf curl, particularly the new leaves. They curl upwards and the leaf had a deformed leathery look. Is this a fungus and what should I spray with ?Is this fatal to the plant ?
Thanks Eve
This morning I found all my Gerbera Daisy flowers shattered–petals all around, but only the center eaten. Located on a deck…could the this be squirrel work. Thanks, Ralph.
I found the same thing with mine. Leaves and stems intact, but center of flower chomped on. I have many squirrels in my yard and have not had the flowers eaten until now. I did see a lot of Earwigs on them a few days ago, but I also saw a stink bug (or similar looking bug) right on the stem under the eaten flower
I have watched Goldfinches shred the petals on the blooms to get to the seeds in the center.
I received a small pot with gerbera daisies about four months ago. The plants were beautiful and I have made a great effort to continue caring for the plant. Everything seems to be going okay. No additional blooms yet, but most of my questions were answered from reading previous posts.
I know this may seem like a really silly question, but here goes…
The plant I received was in a basic green planter and the planter was then placed inside a more decorative porcelain pot. Should I take the plant out of the inside planter and put it in the ceramic one? The ceramic pot has a hole at the bottom where water drains into a lip around the base, so it seems like it would be okay…or actually better than what it is in now. It would certainly give it a bit more room.
I am very new to caring for plants, so forgive me if this is an extremely 101 type of question.
Light leaves and short stems
Hi, I have a Gerbera at my desk at work, I’m near a window and periodically put it there for sun. My question is one I haven’t seen asked here yet – the leaves seem very healthy, nice and very firm, but are extremely pale! Not yellow, but a very pale green, quite pretty only I fear its not normal. My coworker also has one and hers’ leaves are quite dark, and we’ve been “windowing” them similarly. Could it be that I gave mine plant food too frequently? I’m not used to feeding plants and fed it every time I watered for awhile. The only other difference between mine and my friends is that hers was repotted.
Is this something to be concerned about? It’s getting flowers although they’re low and seem to have very short petals on the bottoms, but there are no bugs or anything.
I would appreciate any advice, thank you!
Are gerbera daisy edible?
I know that regular daisy leaves are edible but not sure of Gerbera leaves as they are not native and have been imported. The Gerbera leaves remind us of spinach leaves. Are they edible?
Botrytis blight
Hi. My grandmother gave me a pot of Gerbera daisies as a birthday gift a few days ago. There are four different plants in the pot—yellow, orange, pink, and red. Yesterday, I noticed that three of the plants—all except the red daisies—had developed brown spots on the petals, which had also began to dry up and curl. What does this usually indicate, and what should I do?
Color change
my gerbera daisies were orange and almost a purple last summer. we had NO winter in south mississippi this year and they’ve continued to bloom. suddenly they’re all yellow? any reason why?
Hi,
My some of my gerbr daisies have developed 2 true leaves right away, while the others, have developed only one true leaf so far. Is this usual with gerber daisies?
Start from seed
Hi,
I planted Jamsonii Gerbera Daisies from seed. They are beginging to germinate after 4 days. How many weeks does it take to get them to flower. I am growing them indoors with grow lights, this is my first time. Would like to have an idea when they will be ready. Thank You.
Ken
Hi! I have a small potted gerber daisy and I keep reading about fertilizing gerber daisies, but I am not sure how much fertilizer and how often? Does miracle grow work? Also how long can I keep my gerber daisy as an indoor plant, it sits by a window all day and receives plenty of light. Thanks for the help!
I am in southern North Carolina. I am growing two gerbera daisies in pots on my deck (which faces east). Both have stopped blooming in the excessive heat, but the leaves on one have become pale green, while the other has leaves tinged in red/purple. I’ve watered them regularly and use african violet plant food once a week. What am I doing wrong?
Flower stems too tall
When growing my gerberas from seed i put them in a large container and the leaves have grown very long, (I didnt know they were supposed to be kept in smaller pots) when it flowered the stem grew 3 times as large as they were supposed to, should i try and downsize and repot them?
botrytis blight
I have two oblong boxes of all yellow gerbers on brick pillars at the edge of my patio; also two hanging pots all yellow.
They have been beautiful this summer, even made it thru our constant torential rains we had after I first planted them. Other than Mother Nature, I have not been pouring water on the plant itself. I have fertilized sereral times with Miracle Grow Bloom fertilizer. However, two of the plants, one in a box & one in a hanging pot have in the last few days had the petals dropping off big time before they begin to dry up & die. ??? Any ideas???
I have recently been bought a gerbera daisy and i have been watering it generously like instructed and giving it light but the petals are turning brown in colour does this mean i should trim them back to the stem to encourage more growth?
I had gerbers growing in a pot on my deck. The squirrels ate the heads off but it grew back. It happened again; will the heads grow again?
Short stems
why aren’t the stems long on my daisy plants?? They are stubby and short!!
This is my first time caring for a gerbera daisy. About a week ago, I rescued a potted gerbera daisy someone didn’t want anymore – as it was drooping/wilting – and I am trying to care for it in the office. It doesn’t get much sun, but it is bright in the office. Will it last?
Right now, the plant is green and looks healthy. I cut it back and removed all the dead leaves, flowers, fallen petals, etc. around it in the pot. The parts that I cut off are turning brown at the tips. Is this supposed to happen when you cut back?
There was also some growth of mold starting, but I carefully cut the entire leaf off, so it wouldn’t contaminate the rest. The soil was very dry, so I added water, but careful not to overwater. The problem is each individual leaf is not growing out flat, and are curling underneath at the ends. There are lots of new green baby leaves coming, but they too are curling at the ends of each leaf. What is the problem? Is it curable and how? Can I reverse this and how?
I have purchased several small gerbera plants that are blooming. I want them for a party on June 11th. How long will they stay blooming? Should I pinch the flowers now with hopes of them reblooming by the 11th?
I just received a potted hanging Gerbera daisy for Mother’s Day and don’t actually know how to care for it. I can hang it outside on porch but is mostly shady there. Please help
Purple veins
I live in the tropics and have been planting gerberas in a self watering container with success so far. Of late tho, the veins on my seemingly healthy (and turgid) leaves are darkening to such a degree, it seems as if I’ve been dipping them into purple ink and the ink is slowly travelling up the main veins to the secondary veins! Quite a scary look.
Something is definitely going on… can you help? Thanks!
Winterover gerbera
I live in Cincinnati OH. I my winter geranium in the garage and they do well. Can I dig my gerberas up, pot them and winter the in the garage?
Transplanting gerbera daisies
Help! The gerbera daisies are sulking but the planters appear lush and healthy. 48 hrs ago I transplanted the plants into rectangular clay planters (6x6x24) I transplanted 10 plants into 5 of these planters. Each planter is full and I’m not sure these planters are large enough for 2 plants. Should I put 1 plant in each planter so they have room to grow? (I have more planters.) I live in Alabama and we’ve just dipped into the mid 50’s at night. How much water should I use and do I need to feed anything to the plants to help the sulking?
I am moving to an apartment down the street in late October. I plan to to dig up my gerbera daisies and put them in clay pots and keep them indoors indefinetly. Should I dig up the plants now, put them in clay pots and leave them outdoors until I move in late October? Should I wait and divide them in the spring or should I divide them when I dig them up? I love these plants and hear they are great at improving indoor air quality. I want to do whatever is the least traumatic so that they will continue to thrive into the winter months.
Moving and dividing gerbera
I am moving to an apartment and want to take my gerbera daisies with me. I have to move in late October. I plan to dig up the plants and put them in clay pots. Should I do this now and leave them outside until I move? These plants are several years old and are quite healthy. Should I split them when I transplant or wait until Spring.
Flowers fail to open
I have a Gerber Daisy that I have planted in a pot on my back deck that has been doing well until recently. Lately, the plant has been producing blooms but they faily to open. The plant is getting plenty of sun and I make sure I water it every other day. The soil is Mirale Gro Moisture Control Potting Soil. What can I do to help my Daisy?
Distorted flowers
I have three gerber daisies, a spike and some million bells in a large wooden container pot. They are located in a sunny area that does receive some afternoon sun. Some of the flowers have come up looking malformed, with less color and partially curled. It almosts looks like I used the bloom booster (Miracle Grow) too much and the flowers were forced up too quickly.
What causes the flowers to be not fully formed? Other than this last set of “weird” flowers all the plants in the container seem happy and the gerbers appear healthy.
Thanks for any advice.
Aphids on Gerbera
I purchased an orange gerbera and have had it on my kitchen window sill for the past month. It has been thriving in Western exposure and has had 4 or 5 new blooms. However, there appear to be little green bugs multiplying on the underside of the flower petals. They do not seem to be eating the flowers, but are quickly increasing in numbers. Do you know what they may be and what I can use to get rid of them? Thanks!
Yellow leaves
I’ve noticed yellowing of the leaves, and evidence of little critters. Little spiders ran for cover after I sprayed them with water.
Hi,
I bought 2 gerbera plants from a store. They both had 3 flowers on them each. One of them is doing good but the other has light green leaves and the flower stems are too long and drooping. I noticed that the stems stood upright every time i watered so i started watering them too often. Now there is water sagging in the pot yet the stems are droopy. Past few weeks have been very cloudy and rainy here in central NJ. i am wondering if lack of strong sunlight could be the problem. They are planted in pots outdoors in my balcony.
Thanks
Brinda
I have a beautiful pot of gerbera daisys. It is about 31 inches wide and 10 inches deep and probably a foot deep. I put 6 gerbera plants in the pot as well as 4 trailing lobelies (one on each corner) and 2 trailers (white that look like alysum but aren’t) in the middle to hang down each side. The pot is wrought iron lined with moss and filled with potting soil. The gerberas were potted right next to each other, not much room to expand out but I think plenty of soil underneath to root into. 4 of the plants look beautiful, their blooms hold their heads high but the other two have lots of blooms and the stems are upright but the blooms look wilted, hanging their heads down. I’ve watered them all the same (I think). Have I planted them too close? Should I take the two out that are droopy to leave more room for the others that are doing well? Thanks for whatever advice you can help me with.
Hi Sally
The gerbera may be crowded and will need room to grow. At 31 inches, if you planted 6 plants that gives them about 5″ of room per plant which sounds crowded but you have room for the roots to grow down into the soil. Be sure you feed the plants during the summer so they are not competing for nutrients. The blooms may be wilted because they are past their prime, the important thing to look for is that the leaves are healthy and putting out more flowers from the center.
Wilting flowers
I have a beautiful potted gerbera on my semi-sunny front porch but the blossoms are starting to wilt. The soil is moist and can drain. Can someone please help? What can be wrong? Thank you.
Hi, how long does it take for the plant to rebloom after division. I divided mine 3 months ago but so far no signs of buds. I have been fertilising regularly too.
Blue Gerbera?
Are blue gerbera daisies real or do you have to die them blue? What about regular daisies?
Leaf spots
my daisy leaves have brown/black patches on it. Even the stem of the flower has some patches.Where I live, the weather is very hot and humid.I water it every morning. why is this happening and what should I do?
I planted four gerbera daisy plants this past summer and they have bloomed wonderfully through the whole summer and now into the start of fall in ohio. I know there isn’t a chance of wintering, so I was wondering how exactly to transport them to be an indoor plant for the winter so I can replant them in the spring.
Also, since they looked so beautiful, I was thinking of planting some purchased seeds to make a bigger garden next year. Would it be best to start those seeds inside and if so, how and when? Or would it be best to wait until the spring? If so, how and when?
Thanks!
Gerbera water problem
Hi! I need some serious help. I recently got a beautiful potted gerbera from my boyfriend and I think I’ve KILLED it!! Because I placed the pot into a larger pot, I didn’t notice that it wasn’t draining properly. The flowers wilted, which I thought was normal, so I removed them from the base. It was then that I realized there was standing water in the bottom, so I removed it and drained the plant. To help dry it out, I placed it in the sunlight yesterday afternoon outside. After reading here, though, I think I might’ve made it worse by SHOCKING the poor thing!
Basically, the leaves look like wilted lettuce at this point – still dreen but very wrinkled and limp/drooping. I’m nervous to water it at all at this point. I just want to nurse it back to health – any suggestions?! Thank you!!
Raising the crown
– rdhagerty@sbcglobal.net – I have 3 gerberas in clay pots on the porch. First time to grow. Have bloomed periodically all summer. Notice they are now really heavy with foliage. I’ve been reading to have the crown above the dirt level. I’m not sure what the crown is. Saw where one person puts a pitchfork under the crown when start to have foliage in the sprinng and raises 2 “. Could I do this to a plant in a pot lush with foliage this time of the year. My husband says he can make something small to work like a pitchfork.
Dividing gerbera
Yes I’m trying to grow more gerbera daisies from the plant i have. Can you tell me where to cut?
I live in the Washington DC area so I seem to be right on the edge of the annual/perennial zone. I planted about 15 gerbera daisies in my yard this spring and I really want them to make it through the winter. They are doing really well now, despite the fact that I seem to be doing everything wrong! They are in a partially raised, mulched bed surrounding a large maple tree and get sun early in the morning. If needed, I water them with a sprinkler in the evening. I have never fertilized. They all have beautiful foliage and 1/4 to 1/3 have several bright flowers at any given time. How do I keep them alive through the winter? I read to cover them. Do I trim back the leaves first? When should they be covered? I am assuming before the first frost. How deep is ‘heavily’? Any other tricks? Thanks!
This seems to be a great site. I became interested in Gerbers when I discovered all the wonderful colors they come in. They are an amazing flower. Last summer, I planted about 8 flowered gerbers in front of my home here in New York City. I really knew nothing about gardening, but I liked the look of the flowers and thought, “What the heck!.” They bloomed all summer into fall and as winter came, they wilted and browned. I did not prune them, but pretty much left them. In early spring of the following year, while cleaning up the front lawn, I pulled out all the decayed brown leaves. They came out quite easily but I noticed the leaves did not pull out the root. It was only the leaves themselves coming up. A few months later in late spring, I noticed very small green leaves coming up. I didn’t think it was possible in New York, but all the gerbers grew back this summer with a vengence. They are huge and yielding many flowers. I even took some seeds and have now baby gerbers growing in my kitchen in little terracota pots. I plan to hold those baby ones until next summer. I’m just puzzled as to how they survived a winter in NY where we get plenty of snow. Any thoughts you have on this would be appreciated. I’m thinking that since they are in a part of the lawn up against the house, they somehow stayed warm? Is that possible?
I leave in the NE. Zone 7. Our gerba daisys did well for a week. Now I notice a bunch of bugs eating at it (these bugs seem to have an armoured coat and are shiny (green/yellow) with pinchers. The bugs look like they are also mating are leaving little holes in the plants. Help! I sprayed with an organic herbacide to kill the bugs, but wont be sure until I get home this evening. The daisys require watering everyday since they sit out in full sun. However, temps haven’t gone up past 83.
My mom got a gerbera after a funeral. The leaves are nice and healthy but the flowers all seem to get too heavy and droop. They have good color and no signs of fungus or bugs. I do not know if she is watering from the top or not. I will find that out tomorrow. She is planning to keep it in the house. Any idea on why the blooms are drooping or what can be done about it? Thanks.
Powdery mildew
We just got a beautiful “Festival Orange” Gerbera Daisy from a greenhouse about a week ago. We live near Denve, CO and have had it sitting on our countertop. It gets watered every morning, about a cup of water, and gets plenty of sunlight from our skylights. Just in the last 2 days, it has started growing a greyish- silverish mold on the leaves, but also a new flower has begun to grow. Is there a safe way to get rid of this pesky mold, or is the plant doomed, considering plants come to my house to die. I could give it back to our friend that got it from the greenhouse that works there, but could he do anything to save it? HELP… please! Thank you!
I have a couple of Gerbera plants that I would like to plant outdoors (I have not had luck with potted flowers and do not want to move them back and forth each season). I live in Seattle (Zone 8). We generally don’t have deep frosts, but everything stays wet all winter. Do you think my flowers have a chance of surviving this and coming back in spring? Any special advice for this climate?
I bought 6 gerber daisy plants. My first ever. We live in Mesa, AZ. I planted late, April 4, 2009. They did great. One day it was almost 100 degrees and one just wilted over and died.
So I was careful to make sure the other had mostly shade. After about 6 weeks of great blooms and a lot of leaf growth, the big pot with 3 plants in it began to fail. First one just withered and died and then the other and finally the last, biggest plant in center. The large plant had a daisy coming up, about 9 inches. It looked gorgeous in themorning and then died that evening. Broke my heart. It has been well over 100 every day for 3 weeks and yesterday it was 107. Just too much heat? Should I have brought them inside? I think I watered too much, once a day, and sometimes full on the plants. My geraniums and Nesium are doing really good.
Gerbera color change
Hi,
Wonderful advice I’ve read in here, what a great service you provide.
I planted some bright pink and yellow gerberas a few months back, the yellow ones always come up
yellower and brighter than the last but the pink ones have faded now to white with just a hint of
pink. They are in a sunny spot (we are in a subtropical region) and the soil is great and well drained,
shall I just fertilise? Is there a particular nutrient which will help with colour? K or N?
Wilted plant
I got a bunch of gerber daisies the other day. Two are doing great but the other two the flowers have wilted. One I think I may have over watered but the other one that is wilted, the soil is damp still but its wilted. I was told i should put them in more direct sun will that help or should I re-pot them? I have never had this problem with them wilting right away.
DIVIDING GERBERA
I’ve been raising gerbers in pots outside for the last 2-3 years, and they’ve done well. They’ve gotten too full for the pots they’re in and need split and repotted, (the soil here sux) but I really don’t know exactly how to do it without killing them. Help please.
(January, Zone 5B) I have successfully over wintered a gerbera and have now divided it into six healthy cuttings. What tips to you recommend to encourage vigorous vegetative development? And, could you recommend ideal the lighting location in the garden morning/full/afternoon sunlight?
Browning petal tips
I live in London, and i recently bought a light pink Gerbera. I am intending to keep at as indoor plant on a windowsill, (in its plastic pot, inside a bigger white pot) which as its England, can not be very sunny at times.
I have noticed the tips of the petals have started to go brownish and a few spots are on one of the petals. Is this bad?
Is it a good idea to instead of watering the soil and risking crown rot, as it isnt a very big pot, to put water in the bigger white pot, and let the Gerbera suck up the water from the holes in the bottom of the plastic pot?
Also, should i be spraying the leaves? And what would be the best sort of fertilizer?
I bought a few Gerber daisies a week ago and have kept them in the green plastic pot they came in. They are placed in the spot where I plan to plant them to make sure they’ll be ok there. One of the Gerberas flowers wilted during the heat wave and the ribs of the leaves are red. Can I still save this plant? How?
No new flowers
I did my window boxes with coral color gerbera daisies. They get the morning sun and the boxes are against the brick of our house. I water them in the morning. They are doing wonderful, tall and full of color. My problem is that I am not seeing new flower sprouts coming up. The green foliage is bright and healthy looking with no signs of fungus, insects, etc. Is there something I can do to get new sprouts or does it just take time? I have about 3-4 flowers with each plant, but when they begin to wilt there will not be new flowers. I am pinching the wilting flowers off at the base of the plant. I am watering from the back of the window boxes. Any suggestions?
Not blooming in heat
I have two wonderful daisies and they did AWESOME up until it started getting 100 degrees. I was diligently watering them, but after the hot hot hot weather passed, it looks like they are dying! i brought them inside (where we keep it about 70) and there has been no recovery. there is no powdery substance, but the leaves are wilted, and all curled up! Help! i dont want to have to go buy more plants! any tips? thank yoU!
I have the same short stem problem as Melilssa. However, when I bought the gerbera from Lowe’s (it it a spider gerbera) it already had the short stem problem apparently. I just thought there were lots of blooms coming but they never grow taller than 1/2 inch and most never open up. Is there any hope for these or should I just enjoy the foliage?
Thanks.
I have a white Gerbera daisy and the flowers are getting a green tinge to them, other than that the plant seems very healthy. Should I pinch the flowers because of this? what should I do?
PLANTING GERBERAS
Thanks! No more question…could you give all of us gerbera challenged a list of tips for planting gerbers? What do we all need to know and do to make these beautiful flowers florish in the ground? If planting gerbers in landscaping with other plants (day lillies) is there anything specific I need to do? You mentioned a raised bed, but if not possible, would it work simply planting the gerbers higher…root ball above ground right?
Crown rot
Hi!
Thanks for all the great info. I planted 4 gerbers in full sun (not in a raised bed) and they thrived for about 4 weeks. We just returned from vacation (they got watered once a day) and they are all dying. I cut them all back and when fertilizing my knock out roses, I put about 1/4 c on each daisy in hopes to save them. I have been watering from the top, so I wonder if crown rot is the problem. Umm…
My question…is there anyway to save them? Maybe a specific fertilizer? Or should I simply pull them and try agian next year? I live in Southern Indiana. Oh and I hear different ideas on watering, if they are planted should they not be watered daily?
HELP!!! Thanks!
I’m glad this information about watering & crown rot is all in one place for a change. I have 4 Gerberas that I planted in my garden 5 days ago, 2 are doing well, the other 2 (the largest and the smallest) seem to be suffering. I did water them overhead, so I suspect crown rot. I read another article that said to mix 1tbsp of ordinary household 3% hydrogen peroxide solution per 8oz of water and pour it around the mulch / soil around the crown to treat and prevent this (avoiding contact with the plant as the peroxide will burn foliage). Is this a good measure to take?
I just planted 2 beds full of beautiful Gerbera Daisies…the beds are raised and get the sun, and I am careful about how I water. The problem is that in just a day I came out and something has been chomping on the leaves, they leave large holes and sometimes just the veins are left. I checked with several growers and they thought it was slugs or snails…so I put out slug and snail bait but when I put out another bed of 30 plants last night (I sprayed the beds with sevin and put out slug bait) today I found some of the leaves were being eaten again. When I went to spray again, I notices something that looked like a grasshopper but it was very small almost like the size of a large mosquito but it was bright green and flew when I sprayed. Can you tell me if anyone knows what type of insect this could be and how do I keep it from having a party with my beautiful plants?
Thanks in advance,
Bren
Grow indoors
Is gerbera able to live without any direct sunlight?
I would like to place it in my kitchen, near the window, where there is plenty of bright light but no direct sunlight..
In other words I would like to grow it as a permanent indoor plant.
BROAD MITE
I have a gerbera Daisy growing indoors. When I bought it several months ago, it was in bloom. The flowers died, now, ne leaves grow in, only get so large and start to dry up, get very brittle, turn sort of a grey color. When I cut them off, new healthy looking green sprouts are starting to come up around the crown, but again only grow so large and start to dry up again. Can’t figure out what I’m doing wrong. It gets about 4 hours of sunlight from the window, I’m very careful about watering, but nothing seems to work.
Thanks for your help.
Paulette
Okay, I bought a Gerbera Daisy for my Girlfriend, On the tag it says Bright Light. When I put it in the sun it wilts I put it in the shade and it starts to perk up. I spritz the leaves and around the Flower itself. But I cant Put it in the sun. What else can i do to keep it from Dying on me? Should i plant it some where?
Hardiness
We recently purchased a home in the Houston, Texas area. When we purchased the home (February) the landscape had some gerber daisies in it and one was even blooming. Now that the weather has warmed up some more and more are blooming. Do I need to do anything to help them out? Fertilize? I didn’t know they would last through the winter, can I continue to leave them planted in the landscape every winter?
Browning leaves
I’ve had my potted gerbera well over a year and it’s been fine until recently. It’s been indoors all its life. The leaves have started to go a reddish brown and then they die. Can you tell me what’s wrong? Should I cut the leaves off? Thanks.
SHORT FLOWER STEMS
Hello! I have a potted gerbera which has been doing really well. It has tons of flower regrowth… Some come, they die, more come, etc. BUT… the flowers are blooming when their stems are less than an inch tall, so they’re completely hidden by the large leaves of the more mature plant. Should I cut back all of the larger leaves? Why would the flowers be blooming so close to the soil? Any advice you could give would be very much appreciated! Thank you!
SPIDER MITES
I bought a gerber daisy from a store about a year ago and it did really well. It bloomed every month it seemed, and I even repoted it. Then I noticed that it had spider mites and the tips of the leaves were going brown. So I soaked the plant in mild soap water and repeated that a week later and I have not seen any spider mites since. However, the plant has not gone back to it’s usual health. Sadly I’ve only had one flower since and the leaves are still going brown. I’ve cut back watering now and I can see there’s a lot of new growth in the leaves. Do you think I need to re pot again? Thanks .
I live in Iowa and took my Gerbera Daisy inside before it got to cold outside. Now it looks like it is dying. Is there anything I should be doing besides watering and sunlight for it while the daisy is inside for the winter months? When is it ok to put it back outside?
NO BLOOMS
I purchased approx. a dozen plants this spring. None have bloomed. They are green and leafy but had not one bloom. I have two questions: 1…should I pot them and bring them indoors this winter and 2. Why wouldn’t they have bloomed this year. I planted them in June..was this too late in the season?
Thanks
My pot plant of Gerbera is wilting – but only half of the plant. I have read on your website about drainage and not watering on the crown (didn’t know I shouldn’t do that), also the plant looks a little pot-bound. I want to re-pot it, is that possible? will it survive? What are my other options? It’s stay wilted now for the past 3 days…
2006-11-14 @ 9:11:42 pm
danielle ( get.nervous@gmail.com
is there anything you can do for crown rot? i suspect my daisies have it, and i don’t want them to die. help!
My gerber daisies have a mold” “gray fungus/on the leaves. What is it, and how do I control(KILL) it?
Pest problemsI don’t know what kind of animal is doing it but something is eating the heads off of my Gerbera daisies. It isn’t deer because we live in the city. Is there something I can spray on them to discourage this?
2007-4-15
KAREN ( kcutrell@charter.net / )
The leaves on my gerberas are being eaten – I have them in a flower bed – nothing else has holes in the leaves only the daisies! What should I be looking for “pest-wiseâ€
Flower color change
Hi! I bought a bright fuschia Gerbera daisy about 10 weeks back. I moved it from the plastic container it came in (with 6 large drainage holes) to a larger ceramic pot )with 1 small drainage hole) about 5 weeks back. I keep it on the patio of our (close to the ocean, southern california) apartment where it gets bright morning sun. I have fertilized it with a houseplant strength Miracle Gro solution once since I bought it. The leaves look good and there’ve been three new blooms. I remove dead leaves and water it once a week or so. But the new blooms are just a pale version of the original color. How can I get the bright fuschia back?
Is the Gerbera Daisy deer resistant?
Brown edges
My wife purchased a flowering gerbera. It was doing fine and we fertilized it with a liquid solution, approx 8% N. The plant showed an immediate response and now is doing poorly. The petioles have crisped off and the leaves are now wilted and drooping. Some are even crisping off. Could this be a N burn issue or is the plant now requiring more fertilizer???
Wintering Gerbera daisy
I live in Northeast Florida where we have occasional freezing temperatures at night. Should I repot my Gerber Daisies and keep indoors for the winter or leave them outside(after cutting back)? If I leave them, should I mulch them.
Indoor plant care
Was just wondering if I can keep my gerbera daisy in pot if I make sure to re-pot when needed? Or do I HAVE to plant it outside? It’s very special to me, I don’t want to hurt it by out door planting (I’m not so good at it, and our soil sucks)
i live in florida where the soil is very sandy. i love gerber daisys but every time i buy a plant it always dies. if i wanted to plant it outside would i be better off planting in the shade.?. if i put the plant in the sun it wilts. are temps go way up to the 90s. i have read all your comments.however i’m still not sure where i should plant the flowers. if i keep the plant inside does it have to have direct sunlight? we have over hangs all around are house so we get very little sunlight. could i try and keep the plant inside all year round? please help me out. thank you
.
Not blooming
I rec’d gerbera when my father passed in Feb. I still have in pot outside and it is doing rather well in leaf production, but has not flowered again. I use a weak solution of fertilizer in non-chlorinated water to water as needed, so why no flowers in 5 months? Will it flower again at all? I am in Austin, TX.
Angie
I’ve had my Gerbera for a little over a year – when my friend gave it to me last spring it was in flower. The plant continues to thrive, but it hasn’t flowered since. Is there any specific way to encourage flower growth?
My flowers’ petals keep falling off. We have had heavy rain lately. Is this the reason?
Even with the heavy rain, when we get a day of sun, the flowers wilt. Should I keep watering them?
Will the flowers continue growing even though the petals fall off? What should I do with that case?
Thank you!
Deadhead flower
How do you deadhead a Gerbera daisy? Do you simply remove only the flower (or what was the flower, actually). Or do you snip the stem at its base? I’ve never planted these before and am totally lost as to how to go about maintaining the flowers so that I have blooms throughout the summer. Thank you in advance!
POWDERY MILDEW
I have planted around 15 Gerbera Daisy’s for wife to have cut flowers. They are not doing so good. The leaves are light green and kind of yellowish. The petals seem OK when they are first coming out but as they get bigger, the petals become disfigured with missing petals and curled petals, etc. Some of the leaves seem to have a sort of powder on them. I would really appreciate any advice you could give.
Thanks, Brett
Tamara
I bought a gerbera daisy in a 2 gallon pot. I put it into a terra cotta pot. It gets lots of heat and sun but it is in some shade on my porch. The first day it was out there the flowers drooped down. So I watered it, drowned it. The plant came back to life a few hours later. I have been giving it a pot of water ever morning before work since. By doing this it seems to be keeping the soil moist and the plant standing but am I going to rot the plant? Also I have powder stuff on the leaves. I thought it might have been from the store dusting for bugs, is it that fungus.