The New International Encyclopædia/Daisy

DAISY (AS. dæges ēage, day's eye, referring to the form of the flower). A plant of the genus Bellis, of the natural order Compositæ. The common daisy (Bellis perennis), plentiful throughout Europe, flowers almost all the year in pastures, meadows, and grassy places. For illustration, see Plate of Dahlias, etc. What are called double varieties, with flowers of various and often brilliant colors, are very commonly cultivated in gardens. A variety has the flower (head of flower) surrounded by smaller ones, the short stems of which grow from the summit of the scape or leafless stem. The daisy (gowan of the Scotch) has long been a favorite with poets and lovers of nature, characteristic as it is of many of the fairest summer scenes, its blossoms gemming the pastures, and recommended also by its frequent appearance during the severer seasons of the year. Its flowers close at night. It is sparingly introduced in America. A species of Bellis is, however, found in the United States (Bellis integrifolia), but it is confined to Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, and the Southwestern States. The flower commonly called daisy, or oxeye daisy, in the United States is a species of chrysanthemum (Chrysanthemum leucanthemum) . A number of other plants are called daisies in the United States, among them Rudbeckia hirta, also called yellow daisy and black-eyed susan. Erigeron annuus, Erigeron strigosus, and other species are called daisies or daisy fleabane, and a number of species of wild aster are likewise known as daisies.