Bellis perennis

{{Short description|Species of plant in the daisy family}} {{Speciesbox |image = Bellis_perennis_sl1.jpg |image2 = Bellis_perennis_001.JPG |genus = Bellis |species = perennis |authority = L. |synonyms = {{hidden begin}} * ''Aster bellis'' E.H.L.Krause * ''Bellis alpina'' Hegetschw. * ''B. armena'' Boiss. * ''B. croatica'' Gand. * ''B. hortensis'' Mill. * ''B. hybrida'' Ten. * ''B. integrifolia'' DC. 1786 not Michx. 1803 * ''B. margaritifolia'' Huter * ''B. minor'' Garsault (''nom inval.'') * ''B. perennis var. caulescens'' Rochebr. * ''B. p.'' f. ''discoidea'' D.C.McClint. * ''B. p.'' var. ''fagetorum'' Lacaita * ''B. p.'' var. ''hybrida'' (Ten.) Fiori * ''B. p.'' subsp. ''hybrida'' (Ten.) Nyman * ''B. p.'' var. ''margaritifolia'' (Huter) Fiori * ''B. p.'' var. ''microcephala'' Boiss. * ''B. p.'' f. ''plena'' Sacc. * ''B. p.'' f. ''pumila'' (Arv.-Touv. & Dupuy) Rouy * ''B. p.'' var. ''pusilla'' N.Terracc. * ''B. p.'' f. ''rhodoglossa'' Sacc. * ''B. p.'' var. ''strobliana'' Bég. * ''B. p.'' var. ''subcaulescens'' Martrin-Donos * ''B. p.'' var. ''tubulosa'' F.J.Schultz * ''B. p.'' f. ''tubulosa'' A.Kern. * ''B. pumila'' Arv.-Touv. & Dupuy * ''B. pusilla'' (N.Terracc.) Pignatti * ''B. scaposa'' Gilib. (''nom inval.'') * ''B. validula'' Gand. * ''Erigeron perennis'' (L.) Sessé & Moc. {{hidden end}} |synonyms_ref = <ref name=tpl>{{ cite web |url=http://www.theplantlist.org/tpl/record/gcc-29324 |title=''Bellis perennis'' L. |work=The Plant List; Version 1.|publisher=Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew and Missouri Botanical Garden |year=2010 |access-date=November 12, 2012}}</ref> }}

'''''Bellis perennis''''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|b|ɛ|l|ɪ|s|_|p|ə|ˈ|r|ɛ|n|ɪ|s}} {{respell|BEL|iss|_|pə|REN|iss}}),<ref>{{Cite Merriam-Webster|Bellis}}</ref><ref>{{Cite Merriam-Webster|philosophia perennis}}</ref> the '''daisy''', is a European species of the family Asteraceae, often considered the archetypal species of the name ''daisy''. To distinguish this species from other plants known as daisies, it is sometimes qualified or known as '''common daisy''', '''lawn daisy''' or '''English daisy'''.

==Description== ''Bellis perennis'' is a perennial herbaceous plant growing to {{Convert|20|cm|abbr=off|frac=2}} in height.<ref name="Spellenberg-2001">{{Cite book |last=Spellenberg |first=Richard |url=https://archive.org/details/nationalaudubons00spel/page/359/ |title=National Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Wildflowers: Western Region |publisher=Knopf |year=2001 |isbn=978-0-375-40233-3 |edition=rev |pages=359 |orig-date=1979}}</ref> It has short creeping rhizomes and rosettes of small rounded or spoon-shaped leaves that are from {{convert|2|to(-)|5|cm|abbr=on|frac=4}} long and grow flat to the ground. The species habitually colonises lawns and is difficult to eradicate by mowing, hence the term 'lawn daisy'.

The plant blooms from March to September<ref name="Spellenberg-2001" /> and exhibits the phenomenon of heliotropism, in which the flowers follow the position of the sun in the sky. The flower heads are composite, about {{convert|2|to(-)|3|cm|abbr=on|frac=4}} in diameter, in the form of a pseudanthium, consisting of many sessile flowers with white ray florets (often tipped red) and yellow disc florets. Each inflorescence is borne on a single leafless stem {{convert|2|to(-)|10|cm|abbr=on|frac=4}}, rarely {{convert|15|cm|frac=4|abbr=on}} tall. The capitulum, or disc of florets, is surrounded by two rows of green bracts known as "phyllaries".<ref name=Stace>{{cite book|last=Stace|first=C. A.|author-link = Stace, C. A.|year=2010|title=New Flora of the British Isles|edition=Third|publisher=Cambridge University Press|location = Cambridge, U.K.| page=749|isbn=9780521707725}}</ref> The achenes are without pappus.<ref>Parnell, J. and Curtis. 2012. ''Webb's An Irish Flora.'' Cork University Press {{ISBN|978-1-85918-478-3}}</ref>

== Etymology == [[File:Sea of Daisies at Kew Gardens.jpg|thumb|Well-trodden meadow at London's Kew Gardens, the grass white with daisies]]

''Bellis'' may come from ''bellus'', Latin for "pretty", and ''perennis'' is Latin for "everlasting".<ref name="mbg" />

The name "daisy", possibly originating with this plant,<ref name="Spellenberg-2001" /> is considered a corruption of "day's eye",<ref>{{cite web |title=daisy facts, information, pictures – Encyclopedia.com articles about daisy |url=http://www.encyclopedia.com/topic/daisy.aspx |website=www.encyclopedia.com}}</ref> because the whole head closes at night and opens in the morning. Geoffrey Chaucer called it "eye of the day". In medieval times, ''Bellis perennis'' or the English Daisy was commonly known as "Mary's Rose".<ref>''The Plant-Lore and Garden-Craft of Shakespeare'', by Henry Nicholson Ellacombe. W. Satchell and Company, London, 1884</ref>

Historically, the plant has also been widely known as '''bruisewort''', and occasionally '''woundwort''' (although this name is now more closely associated with the genus ''Stachys''). It is also known as ''bone flower''.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Nowick |first=Elaine |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=STTRCQAAQBAJ&pg=PA66 |title=Historical Common Names of Great Plains Plants, with Scientific Names Index: Volume II: Scientific Names Index |date=2014 |publisher=Lulu.com |isbn=978-1-60962-060-8 |page=66}}</ref>

== Distribution and habitat == ''Bellis perennis'' is native to western, central and northern Europe, including remote islands such as the Faroe Islands, but has become widely naturalised in most temperate regions, including the Americas<ref name="fna">{{cite web |title=''Bellis perennis'' Linnaeus |url=http://www.efloras.org/florataxon.aspx?flora_id=1&taxon_id=200023530 |work=Flora of North America}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date= |title=PLANTS Profile for Bellis perennis (lawndaisy) {{!}} USDA PLANTS |url=https://plants.usda.gov/java/profile?symbol=bepe2 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100306130443/https://plants.usda.gov/java/profile?symbol=bepe2 |archive-date=2010-03-06 |access-date= |website=plants.usda.gov}}</ref> and Australasia. It prefers field-like habitats.<ref name="Spellenberg-2001" />

== Cultivation == {{World|date=April 2023}} The species generally blooms from early to midsummer, although when grown under ideal conditions, it has a very long flowering season and will even produce a few flowers in the middle of mild winters.<ref name="mbg">{{cite web | url = http://www.missouribotanicalgarden.org/gardens-gardening/your-garden/plant-finder/plant-details/kc/b749/bellis-perennis.aspx | title = Bellis perennis L. | work = Missouri Botanical Garden Bellis perennis }}</ref><ref name="pfaf">{{cite web | url = http://www.pfaf.org/user/Plant.aspx?LatinName=Bellis+perennis | title = Bellis perennis L | work = Plants for a Future database}}</ref>

It can generally be grown where minimum temperatures are above {{convert|-30|°F|°C|round=5|order=flip}}, in full sun to partial shade conditions, and requires little or no maintenance. It has no known serious insect or disease problems and can generally be grown in most well-drained soils. The plant may be propagated either by seed after the last frost, or by division after flowering.<ref name="mbg" /><ref name="usda">{{cite web | url = https://planthardiness.ars.usda.gov/ | title = USDA Zones | work = USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map | access-date = 2012-05-02 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20140227032333/http://planthardiness.ars.usda.gov/PHZMWeb/ | archive-date = 2014-02-27 | url-status = live }}</ref>

Though not native to the United States,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://plants.usda.gov/plant-profile?symbol=BEPE2|title=USDA Plants Profile for ''Bellis perennis'' (lawndaisy)|work=usda.gov}}</ref> the species is still considered a valuable ground cover in certain garden settings (e.g., as part of English or cottage inspired gardens, as well as spring meadows where low growth and some colour is desired in parallel with minimal care and maintenance while helping to crowd out noxious weeds once established and naturalised).

Numerous single- and double-flowered varieties are in cultivation, producing flat or spherical blooms in a range of sizes ({{Convert|1 to 6|cm|abbr=on|disp=or|frac=8}}) and colours (red, pink and white). They are generally grown from seed as biennial bedding plants. They can also be purchased as plugs in spring.

It has been reported to be mostly self-fertilizing, but some plants may be self-sterile.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Warwick|first1=S. I.|last2=Briggs|first2=D.|date=September 1979|journal=New Phytologist|volume=83|issue=2|pages=509–536|doi=10.1111/j.1469-8137.1979.tb07616.x|issn=0028-646X|title=The Genecology of Lawn Weeds|doi-access=free|bibcode=1979NewPh..83..509W }}</ref>

==Uses== ''Bellis perennis'' may be used as a potherb. The young leaves can be eaten raw in salads<ref>Budwig, Johanna (1956). ''Krebs – ein Fettproblem, richtige Wahl und Verwendung der Fette''. Hyperion-Verlag, Freiburg im Breisgau, p. 44: recipe for cancer patients.</ref> or cooked, but the leaves become increasingly astringent with age.<ref name="mbg" /> Flower buds and petals can be eaten raw in sandwiches, soups and salads.<ref name="pfaf" /> It is also used as a tea and as a vitamin supplement.<ref name="fna" />

''B. perennis'' has astringent properties and has been used in herbal medicine.<ref>Howard, Michael (1987). ''Traditional Folk Remedies''. Century, p. 129.</ref>

Daisies have traditionally been used for making daisy chains in children's games.<ref>{{cite web| title = Children's 'right to play'| work = BBC News| publisher = BBC| date = 2002-08-07| url = https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/education/2176467.stm| access-date =2008-11-02 }}</ref>

==In culture== Daisy is used as a feminine name, and sometimes as a nickname for people named Margaret, after the French name for the oxeye daisy, {{Lang|fr|marguerite}}.

The daisy is the national flower of the Netherlands.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://nos.nl/artikel/2477682-madeliefje-verkozen-tot-nationale-bloem | title=Madeliefje verkozen tot nationale bloem | date=4 June 2023 }}</ref>

==Gallery== <gallery class="center" caption="''Bellis perennis''" widths=195 heights=195> File:Bellis_perennis_-_flowers_(18739573142).jpg|Leaves suddenly broaden to their ends File:Bellis_perennis_in_Aveyron_(18).jpg|Leaves frequently prostrate File:Bellis_perennis_sl5.jpg|Flower head maturing to a cone File:Bellis perennis (8580127027).jpg|Immature flowers often particularly reddened File:Bellis_perennis_'Tasso_Red'_Stokrotka_pospolita_2022-04-09_02.jpg|Horticultural example </gallery>

==References== {{Reflist}}

==External links== {{Sister project links |wikt=Bellis perennis |commons=Bellis perennis |commonscat=yes |n=no |q=Daisies |s=Daisy |b=no |v=no}} * {{EB9|noicon=1|wstitle=Daisy}} * [https://pfaf.org/user/Plant.aspx?LatinName=Bellis+perennis PFAF ''Bellis perennis'' profile]

perennis Category:Garden plants Category:Medicinal plants of Europe Category:Perennial plants Category:Plants described in 1753 Category:Botanical taxa named by Carl Linnaeus