They look great! I keep looking at mine that I Ws'd last year to pop open, hopefully this week.

Seems like they're a little slow, mine were kind of stuck on partially opened buds for awhile. It could be the cool weather we're having. But they're blooming in June which is a bit surprising considering my other shastas never start blooming until sometime in July.

Thanks! Yours will open soon, I'm sure. I'm glad to see they really were crazy, got the seeds on an ebay sampler packet IIRC, and some other ones were not what I bought. Regular tomatoes and got a whole row of cherry ones instead. I had a lot of plants and was hoping to have some to can. Now I'm using the area for flowers.

Mine were stuck in neutral for a few days also. But started blooming last week and still at it. So pretty. I'm afraid these 90's we are to have this week my make them wilt.
Yours look great!
Bonnie

I love crazy daisies! You will get a nice clump of them as time goes on, and they really are special.

I could divide it already (not now, of course) but won't until I have to. I'll really have to watch it when it's supposed to heat up here shortly. That big center bloom was drooped over, lucky I caught that in time, it did perk up.

Thanks for the nice comments. Have a batch going now but may not germinate, off to a bad start w/spring sowing. A healthy one is all I need.

It was just nice to have something to show for once after watching those jugs, don't do as many as some of you because am pressed for space.

I love any daisy, they are just soooo pretty lol.

I love daisies, too, and have some painted in one jug now. Those I hate to plant HOS because of the different colors, but if I try to separate them out, I'll ruin them.

What I wanted to know is I like those spring ones, they really last a long time, and asked for and got some on freecycle. Now they are ratty, in a different area from the crazy, can stand the shabby look because they're newly transplanted, think they'll be fine, am watering first year, but I don't know if I should deadhead them or not or try to let them self seed. They can be invasive, but I want them to fill in more before I start trying to control them. So would appreciate your thoughts about deadheading/cutting plants back if any more take a look at this.

Ok are you refering to the painted daisy or another one??

Painted daisies are great for other reasons than just their looks. They are a Pyrethrum, which is the active ingredient in commercial pesticides. I want a huge patch of painted daisy around my veggies to help keep off the scale and aphids.

If you want a bigger patch sure let them go to seed and reseed, if there are to many you can always thin them out. If you deadhead there will be no chance of reseeding. If you cut them back now they may bloom later on in the season and it will make your plant bushier. When I put in a plant for the first time I never expect it to be the "look" I am hoping for. I always say next year it will be pretty.

So I guess to sum it up if you want more I would just leave them be. Let them set seed and you can always take the seed head off, and directly sow them so the seeds are where you want them and not where the wind wants to put them.

Sorry about the confusion. Was talking about the spring-blooming freebies and wondered if I should deadhead those? I don't think it matters one way or the other as they should spread from the roots, just watered them. They are a nice daisy and not scraggly (don't look so great now) like some I've seen around town, but if they self seed and come up singly, that's a different matter. I like them in clumps or massed but under control. A few people here cover their whole steep terraces with them.

I wanted the spring ones for a couple years anyway; they bloom the same time as iris and once-blooming roses, and I thought they'd be really pretty with those plus my found and rooted pink rose which needed something else there. Was going to move some of the yellow iris there, too.

That's good to know about painted daisy, didn't know that. They are clustered in one corner of the jug (little over 1/4) but one of the first up. Don't know why my stuff germinates that way, it's level, but if I end up with just one or two of anything, I'm happy, like experimenting w/seeds but want variety.

So my best bet is to plant them HOS and thin only if I have to. I decided I don't mind the colors mixing. They do in a planter I saw a photo of anyway (mine will go into ground). Then if I get them through the heat of the summer and first winter, in time I can divide the clumps and get more. I'm going to let them get a little bigger B4 I plant them.

I will let the painted daisies go to seed if I am successful, and thanks much for that.

Crazy was droopy today, gave it some water, low to the ground and it has an irrigation bottle (mentioned those on another thread). Those bottles are trapping beetles, don't know if that is a good thing or bad, no ladybugs at least.

Sorry I tend to ramble; wish I could make myself be more succinct.