Gaillardia grandiflora Aurea Pura seeds

The 'Aurea Pura' Perennial Blanket Flower is a selection of Gaillardia x grandiflora with pure yellow flowers. It blooms all summer and even longer, with large flowers featuring two rows of toothed petals with a brown centre. Characterised by its daisy-like flowers and tall stems, this perennial is perfect for making bouquets. However, due to wind or the weight of the flowers, its stems may sometimes bend; a sheltered location or light staking will help correct this. Despite its relatively short lifespan, it stands out for its undemanding nature, hardiness, and drought resistance. It thrives in rocky or sandy, dry soils, whether in paving, a scree garden, a rockery, or even in a large pot on a sunny terrace.

Gaillardia x grandiflora is a horticultural hybrid resulting from the cross-breeding of Gaillardia aristata, a perennial native to the central Great Plains of North America, and Gaillardia pulchella, an almost annual plant, native to northern Mexico and the southern and central United States. Belonging, like its two parents and like the sunflower, to the large asteraceae family, this hybrid has inherited from its first parent a strong hardiness and increased longevity, and from the second its extraordinary floriferous nature, rapid growth, and extreme undemanding nature.

The 'Aurea Pura' variety forms a clump reaching 70 cm in height and 40 cm in spread, adorned with large head flowers measuring 8 to 12 cm in diameter from summer to autumn, attracting pollinating insects. The pure yellow petals surround a brown centre. The foliage, mainly basal, features narrow, slightly lobed or deeply cut leaves, with a grey-green and slightly hairy appearance. Even towards the end of flowering, the flowers of this variety maintain a distinctive appeal, somewhat reminiscent of the beauty of echinaceas.

Blanketflower thrives in light, well-drained soils, while tolerating drought and heat perfectly, making it an ideal plant for sunny locations. It tends to self-seed abundantly, so it is advisable to regularly remove faded flowers to encourage new blooming and prevent excessive spread. Although sometimes considered old-fashioned, blanket flowers, like large-flowered coreopsis and gauras, are among the most floriferous. Their main weakness lies in their sensitivity to ambient humidity, even in well-drained soils. In gardens in the south, especially in average-quality soils, the blanket flower pairs beautifully with lavenders, rosemary, cotton lavenders, rockroses, Bloody Cranesbill, mugworts, and grasses like Stipas, all equally resilient and floriferous. In a meadow, pair them with Shasta daisies or pincushion flowers for a rustic scene.