Blanket Flower: Sowing, Pruning & Hardiness

The blanket flower is an eye-catcher in the bed or bucket with its attractive blossom and the different shades of colour. We give tips on choosing a variety, planting and caring for the perennial.

The Blanket Flower (Gaillardia) shows a mostly two-colored flower like only a few other perennials. We give an overview of the most beautiful varieties and tips on cultivation and care of the perennial blanket flower.

Blanket flower: flower, properties and origin

The blanket flower, also called parrot flower or painter's flower, originally comes from Central and North America. It belongs to the daisy family (Asteraceae) and is similar to

sunflower (Helianthus) and mock coneflower (Echinacea) counted among the prairie perennials. The hemispherical, bushy or upright growing, but rather short-lived perennials reach a height of between 20 and 70 centimeters depending on the variety and species. The leaves of the blanket flower are pinnate at the base, lanceolate and hairy on the stem.

The flower of the parrot flower can grow to more than ten centimeters and is classically two-tone in red with yellow-orange edges. The petals can also be rolled up in certain varieties. The long flowering period of the blanket flower extends from June to September. It is valuable for bees and other insects because it has a long flowering period and provides pollen even in midsummer, which is otherwise often nutrient-poor. After pollination, the perennial forms funnel-shaped seeds with a white appendage for wind dispersal, the pappus. They spread in this way around the mother plant and over long distances.

tip: Blanket flowers are largely avoided by snails and other pests.

The most beautiful varieties of blanket flowers

Among the diverse varieties of blanket flowers, there are mostly hybrids, the so-called large-flowered blanket flowers (Gaillardia x grandiflora). Varieties of the prairie blanket flower (Gaillardia aristata), which usually remain smaller than hybrid varieties.

• 'Arizona Sun': Blanket flower of the species Gaillardia aristata with orange-red flowers and yellow tips. The plants reach a growth height of only 30 cm.
• 'Burgundy': German breed from 1931 with large flowers and completely burgundy petals and a growth height of 60 - 70 cm.
• 'Bremen': Upright growing, slender variety with marguerite-like, dark red flowers with yellow tips and a growth height of up to 60 cm.
• 'torchlight': This blanket flower has very large flowers and a clump-like, upright habit of up to 70 cm. The petals are deep red in color while the tips are bright yellow.
• 'Leprechaun': Dwarf, compact growth up to 30 cm and two-tone petals; the variety is ideal for planting in pots and balcony boxes.
• 'Mesa Peach': Blanket flower with red-orange-yellow flowers and a growth height of up to 40 cm.
• 'Tizzy': Deep crimson, pale orange or yellow flowering cultivar mix with particularly attractive curled petals.

Planting, location and Co.

Blanket flowers can be grown from seed or planted directly into the ground as a perennial. Blanket flowers are sown between April and May in the cold frame or on the window sill. The light germs are not covered with soil, but only applied to potting soil, lightly pressed and carefully watered. At temperatures of around 15 °C, the seeds germinate after two to three weeks. Until planting out at the end of May, the cockade flowers should be pricked out, placed in nutrient-rich potting soil and later slowly hardened outdoors. Parrot flowers grown from seed will flower for the first time about 14 to 20 weeks after sowing.

If you have purchased blanket flowers from a nursery as a large perennial, it should end in late fall Plant in October or early spring while the perennial is dormant located. Instead of leaves, the blanket flower initially only forms roots and can supply itself with water and nutrients more quickly. With summer approaching, spring plantings should be watered more often until a sufficiently large root system has formed. The ideal location for blanket flowers is sunny. But which soil is suitable for the blanket flower? Nutrient-rich and humus-rich soils with good water storage capacity are ideal. A high-quality, nutrient-rich potting soil, like ours Plantura organic potting soil, meets all of these soil condition criteria. It is therefore suitable not only for potted plants but also for improving garden soil.

First, the soil is loosened over a large area before you dig a generous planting hole. The planting distance of cockade flowers is 30 to 50 centimeters depending on the variety. Put the perennials in and fill the hole with substrate. Blanket flowers can also be kept in the bucket, but the planter should hold at least 10 to 15 liters of soil. Fill the bottom of the pot with a drainage layer of gravel, sand or expanded clay to avoid waterlogging.

tip: Blanket flowers are particularly colour-coordinated with other sun-loving perennials such as delphinium (delphinium), Rudbeckia (Rudbeckia) or fine beam asters (Erigeron) combine.

Care of Gaillardia

In addition to watering and a little fertilizer, the care of the blanket flower consists primarily of pruning after flowering, which is essential for good winter hardiness and longevity.

Cut, water and fertilize the blanket flower

In general, when cutting the blanket flower, care is taken to ensure that withered and faded parts are removed regularly. On the one hand, this prevents diseases and, on the other hand, promotes the formation of new flowers during the summer. Blanket flowers are unfortunately quite short-lived without regular pruning. A hand-high pruning of the entire plant after flowering in September is necessary every year and promotes winter hardiness and the formation of young buds for the next year. If you cut back too late, the cockade flower may not survive the winter. As prairie plants, the perennials are quite drought tolerant, but regular watering is necessary in hot summers and for blanket flowers in pots.

Blanket flowers in tubs should be given a new, larger pot with fresh potting soil and some fertilizer every two to four years, depending on growth. Fertilizing blanket flowers in the bed is also useful in spring to support leaf sprouting and flower formation. A predominantly organic long-term fertilizer, like ours Plantura organic flower fertilizer, slowly and gently releases the nutrients it contains over a period of about three months. The granular fertilizer is easily incorporated into the soil or substrate and the nutrients are made available to plants through the activity of soil organisms.

Parrot flower does not bloom: what to do?

There are various reasons why the attractive parrot flowers cannot or do not want to bloom. Many problems can arise from the location, irrigation and fertilization and can be solved quickly:

• Inappropriate location: Move or rearrange the plant
• water supply: Avoid drought and waterlogging
• nutrient deficiency: repotting and fertilizing
• Perennial senile: Rejuvenation of the cane by pruning after flowering and division, new sowing may be necessary

Blanket flowers are comparatively short-lived perennials that age quickly and hardly grow or flower after four to five years. Often this is because the plants have not been pruned back radically enough or have never been divided to promote their longevity.

Is the blanket flower hardy?

The blanket flower is hardy to below -20 °C if pruned back in September. In very harsh locations, winter protection may be required. An insulating mulch layer made of leaves and coniferous branches or sheep's wool protects the cockade flower from harsh sub-zero temperatures. Parrot flowers in pots should either overwinter in a frost-free winter quarters or be wrapped well with jute and fleece so that the root system does not suffer frost damage. Winter protection should definitely be applied to freshly planted perennials.

Propagating Blanket Flower

Blanket flowers can basically be propagated via their seeds, they also like to sow themselves in the bed. The plant must not be cut back after flowering to obtain seeds. In October, the seeds can be cut off and dried indoors until the seeds come out by themselves. After further drying, they can be stored in a cool, dry and dark place. It is easier to propagate the parrot flowers by dividing the perennial. In late autumn, a piece of the existing stock is simply cut off with a spade and moved to a suitable location. Dividing is also a measure for rejuvenation, because it promotes the willingness to bloom and lifespan of the perennial. A division should therefore take place every two to four years.

Is the blanket flower poisonous?

Basically, the blanket flower is not poisonous, but it does contain gaillardin, which can trigger contact allergies on the skin in sensitive people. Therefore, as a precaution, use gloves when pruning the plant.

A distant relative of the blanket flower is the knapweed (Centaurea), which fits into every perennial border with its delicate flowers in a wide variety of colors.