Andy Fusco, Director of Horticulture, Tulsa Garden Center at Woodward Park

One of most rewarding things about gardening is its seasonal nature. Even though the seasons stay the same, each year brings new surprises and learning opportunities.  This spring, for example, seemed to start late and end early.  The tulips had barely finished before we saw our first 90-degree day and we’re on track for our windiest year in over 15 years.  As a lifelong Okie I’ve learned to roll with the punches, but some of these poor plants just can’t keep up!

I always get excited when I come across a new plant that is not only unique and fascinating but is also sure to hold up in our Oklahoma gardens.  Leigh Taylor, Teaching Garden Manager, recently redesigned an area near the greenhouse to showcase an emerging trend in horticulture, prairie or meadow inspired designs.  Sometimes called matrix plantings, these gardens often can often look as wild as they are beautiful, but are in fact purposefully designed.  Many different plants are carefully placed to make the most out of small spaces and provide interest throughout every season. 

Early this spring, we took a trip to Stillwater to see our friends at Bustani Plant Farm.  If you’ve been lucky enough to visit Steve and Ruth Owens’ operation, you know it can be hard to stick to a plan (and don’t even mention budget)! So, although were careful not to let our eyes wonder too much, one plant did catch our attention that was not on our list, but would be a perfect addition to Leigh’s new planting—the Rayless Gaillardia (Gaillardia suavis).  Fair warning, I have not seen this plant for sale anywhere other than Bustani.  If it intrigues you as much as it did me, be sure to get it on your list for next year.

Rayless Gaillardia, also known as Pincushion Daisy or Fragrant Gaillardia, looks much like Blanket Flower (Gaillardia pulchella), but with a deep red center and little to no petals.  Despite looking like something out of a Dr. Seuss book, there has been no human tinkering with this plant.  It is a naturally occurring species with a range in the United States from the Texas-Mexico border up through Oklahoma and into northern Kansas.  In Oklahoma, it mainly occurs in the dryer part of the state, west of I-35, but has been documented in a few counties east of that, including Tulsa County.  Much like its cousin, the blanket flower, it is a drought tolerant perennial, preferring well-drained soil in a location that receives at least 6 hours of direct sunlight per day.    This is one of those native plants that thrives on neglect, but a little extra water in the peak of the summer and some deadheading will extend its bloom time into early fall. 

The inflorescence (flower head) gives the appearance of a flower without petals, but in fact is a collection of many individual flowers.  Every plant in the sunflower family (Asteraceae) is distinguished by what are called composite flowers.  Composite flowers are made up of 50 to over 100 small individual flowers (florets), combined into a single inflorescence—what we see as a single flower.  In most species in the sunflower family, there are two types of florets.  Disc florets make up the center of the flower and lack any showy parts.  Ray florets each contain a single petal and make up the outer edge of the head, giving the flower it’s distinct look.

Composite flowers give plants in the Aster family the ability to produce hundreds of seeds on a single stock.  Think of a sunflower head at the end of the season, with its many black seeds ripe for the paws of a hungry squirrel.  Each of those seeds was produced by an individual flower as part of a large composite flower.  Composite flowers provide a unique advantage to the plant in that it gets most of its flowers pollinated while only having to make a small percentage of the florets attractive to pollinators.  That saves a lot of energy!

So what would be the advantage of being ray-less?  The evolution of Gaillardia suavis has not been extensively studied, but it seems that what the Rayless Gaillardia lacks in showy petals, it makes up for in scent.  Although the ones in the Teaching Garden are not blooming yet, it is said to have a strong, sweet fragrance, a rarity in this family.  If you look closely, you can see that the plant has not entirely lost its ray florets, but they are instead greatly reduced.  One can assume that at one time, the rayless gaillardia was able to carve out its own unique niche by being less showy and more fragrant.  At the very least, it has carved out a unique place in this plant lover’s heart.

THIS ARTICLE IS FROM SUMMER 2022 IN THE GARDEN, TULSA GARDEN CENTER’S QUARTERLY NEWSLETTER PUBLICATION. TO SEE THE FULL ISSUE, CLICK HERE.