Dimorphotheca eckloni

Common names : Cape marguerite, Van Staden's River daisy, Sundays River daisy, white daisy bush, blue-and-white daisy bush (Eng.); Kaapse magriet, jakkalsbos, Vanstadensrivier madeliefie, Sondagsrivier madeliefie (Afr.)

D. ecklonis has beautiful, white ray florets and a dark blue centre (disc florets). A collection of these plants in full bloom certainly creates a stunning show in any garden!

Description
FlowerheadD. ecklonis is a perennial plant of up to 1 m high and as much in diameter, erect to decumbent. It can get woody at the base. The leaves are alternately arranged, sessile, simple, elliptic, slightly succulent and the margins are entire to conspicuously dentate, crowded at the ends of the branches; the lower branches are quite nude.

The large flowerheads (capitula) are up to 80 mm in diameter and borne singly or in a few groups at the end of the branches on short stalks (peduncles). The ray florets are long, bright white on the upper side and light blue or violet on the lower side. The disc florets are dark blue or purple.

The fruits (cypselae) of the ray florets are about 7 x 3 mm, smooth, obovoid and triangular. More about Asteraceae flowers and an explanation of the terminology.