Cape Daisy Copper Amethyst

Cape Daisy 'Copper Amethyst' (Osteospermum 'Copper Amethyst') covers a hot sunny bed in colour faster than almost anything else we grow. It forms a low spreading mound about 40cm tall and 60cm across, carrying copper toned daisies over a deep purple eye from early spring well into autumn. All it asks is full sun and sharp drainage.

Why you'll love it

• Colour in the first season. It grows fast, so tubes planted in spring are flowering and knitting together by summer.
• An unusual colour break. Copper petals over a purple centre shift tone as the flowers age, which keeps a mass planting from reading flat.
• Tough where it counts. Drought tolerant, heat tolerant and salt tolerant, so it holds up in coastal beds and hot dry aspects.
• Bees and butterflies work it constantly. Open daisy flowers over a long season are among the easiest nectar sources you can plant.

Where it works best

Groundcover and mass planting. Plant 40cm apart for a solid carpet of colour. The plants meet within a season and shade out most weed germination.

Borders and edging. The same 40cm spacing in a single row gives a soft flowering edge along a path or driveway.

Pots and rockeries. It spills over the rim of a pot or a low wall, and the gritty soil of a rockery suits it better than a rich bed.

Growing cape daisy in Australia

Position and climate. Full sun, all day if you can give it. The flowers close at night and on overcast days, which is how the plant works rather than a fault. It suits warm temperate, Mediterranean, subtropical and cool temperate gardens, and takes light frost only, so in hard frosting districts grow it in a pot.

Soil. Free draining is the requirement. Sandy and gravelly soils are ideal, and on clay you should raise the bed and work coarse sand through it. Winter wet is what kills these plants, not cold.

Water and feed. Water regularly for the first six weeks, then only through dry spells. A light complete fertiliser in early spring and again after the main flush keeps the flowering going.

Pruning. Shear the whole plant back by about a third after each big flush. This is the one job that matters, because plants left unsheared go woody and open in the middle within two years.

What to expect when it arrives

It comes as tube stock and in 140mm pots in packs of ten. Tubes are the cheapest way to cover ground and they catch up quickly given how fast this plant grows. A pack of ten 140mm plants covers roughly 1.5 square metres at 40cm spacing.

Soft leafy plants can look flattened after transit and lift again within days once watered in. Expect flowers within six to eight weeks in the warm months. Delivered Australia wide, delivery from $29.95, minimum order of $300 before delivery, and every plant carries our 30 day healthy plant guarantee.

Plant care guides and related reading

• More ideas for the front of the bed in low growing plants for borders.
• Compare options in our groundcover collection.
• Add more nectar with bee and butterfly plants.
• Find companions among rockery plants.

Common questions

How far apart should I plant it?

Plant 40cm apart for a solid carpet of colour, whether as groundcover or a border row. Closer planting crowds the crowns and encourages rot in humid weather.

Why are the flowers shut?

Cape daisies close their petals at night, in shade and under heavy cloud, then reopen with the sun. If yours stay shut on a bright day, the position needs more direct light.

How long will the plants last?

Expect three to four good years from each plant, sometimes longer with regular shearing. They are fast and generous rather than long lived, so plan on refreshing a mass planting.

Will it survive frost?

Light frost only. A touch of frost burns the leaf tips and the plant recovers in spring, but repeated hard frosts kill it. In cold inland gardens grow it in pots you can shift.