oxeye daisy
Family
AsteraceaeScientific Name
Chrysanthemum leucanthemum
Other Common Names:
marguerite
daisy
field daisy
poorland flower
whiteweed
Synonyms (former Scientific Names):
Chrysanthemum leucanthemum
Habit
Seedlings exhibit ovate, hairless cotyledons 3 to 5.5 mm long and 1 to 2.5 mm wide. The numerous hairless stems of the shallow-rooted oxeye daisy can reach up to 1 m in height. Oxeye daisy spreads by seed and creeping rhizomes.
Leaves
Basal leaves are spatula-shaped and stalked usually 4-15 cm long and 5 cm wide. Edges of the basal leaves can be toothed to deeply lobed. Leaves of the stem are smooth and glossy, and they are alternate in arrangement. Leaf size decreases with height. Oxeye daisy's short leaf stalks cling to the stem and leaf margins are toothed to shallowly lobed. Leaves are lacerated near the base.
Identifying Characteristics
Daisy-like flower with white ray florets and yellow disk florets. Leaves have wavy to lobed margins and clasping bases.
Flower Seed Head
Found on the ends of stems the 2-6 cm flower heads and are composed of white ray and yellow disk florets. Each head bears 15-35 white ray florets 10-20 mm long. The yellow disk florets are approximately 3 mm long. Both types of floret are capable of producing seed. The whole flower can be 2 cm across.
Seed Fruit
Each floret produces an achene bearing a single 1 to 2 mm, ovate, brown to black seed. Seed surface is marked by 10 prominent ribs.
Where Found
Found throughout Canada and the United States it can quickly replace up to 50% of the grass in a pasture. The shallow root system, easily damaged by cultivation, prevents it from becoming a problem in cultivated crops.
Growth Habit
upright and nonwoody
Thorns or Spines
not present
Approximate Flower Diameter
Varies:
nickle,
quarter,
half dollar,
larger
Dominant Flower Color
white
Flower Symmetry
radial symmetery
Leaf Hairs
no hairs
Leaf Shape
lance
Leaf Arrangement
alternate
Leaf Margin
Varies:
lobed,
serrated
Leaf Structure
simple
Leaf Stalk
shorter than leaf
Stem Hairs
no hairs
Stem Cross Section
round or oval
Milky Sap
not present
Root Structure
fibrous
Life Cycle
perennial
Ochrea
not present
Plant Type
Herb