Daisies

Daisies are a very common and well-known wildflower found in lawns, meadows and grassland. Children enjoy picking the flowers to make daisy chains, but daisies are also edible and have been used in herbal medicines for centuries. Daisy used to be applied to relieve aching joints, so was referred to as Gardener’s Friend. 

Daisies belong to the aster family, and it is the English daisy that is the most common in the UK. The English daisy has numerous slightly hairy leaves at its base, in the form of a rosette. The flower stalks do not produce leaves. Some varieties of the English daisy have double flowers while others produce pink petals around the yellow centre. 

Although many gardeners do not object to their presence, English daisies can spread and cause damage to large areas of the lawn by forming a dense mat which smothers the grass. Regular mowing will not keep daisies under control as they grow very low to the soil, so often they are best removed by hand. Scarification and aeration will also remove daisies, break up their roots and promote the growth of dense grass that will help prevent regrowth.