What do strawflower seeds require?

By Chelsie Vandaveer

November 13, 2003

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The immortelle, strawflower, or golden everlasting daisy (Xerochrysum bracteatum (Ventenat) Tzvelev) is native to Australia. In their native habitat, the plants grow in sandy or gravelly soils in open grasslands. The plant was introduced to English gardeners in 1799. The golden everlasting daisy was originally named Xeranthemum bracteatum by Étienne Pierre Ventenat in 1803. Over the years, it was placed in the genera Helichrysum and Bracteantha.

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Like the sunflower, the 'flower' of the strawflower is actually an inflorescence composed of a disk of florets. The strawflower has about one hundred florets per inflorescence. But unlike the sunflower, the obvious 'petals' are not ray florets. The involucral bracts that subtend the inflorescences of most members of the daisy family are green and overlapping. The strawflower's bracts are modified--glossy, papery, and yellow.

The strawflower is perennial where winters are mild (light frosts) and treated as an annual where winters are severe. The inflorescences retain their color when cut and dried for flower arrangements, hence the names everlasting or immortelle. (Hortus Third, Staff Liberty Hyde Bailey Hortorium, Cornell University, Macmillan Publishing Co., 1976)

Strawflowers are considered easy to grow and reliable bloomers from spring through autumn. But the seeds have an unusual requirement. They must be exposed to light and will not germinate if buried in the soil.

Net-Garden has several photographs of strohblume, strawflower, or immortelle. To view the flowers, click on the link:

http://www.net-garden.de/Foto-Seiten/Strohblume.html

Click on the bilder (photo) numbers to see various varieties of strawflowers.

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