Gaillardia × grandiflora ‘Mesa Bright Bicolor’

A cultivated hybrid derived from the North American species Gaillardia aristata and Gaillardia pulchella, this perennial herb is grown for its conspicuous flower heads. This selection forms an upright, well-branched plant with yellow ray flowers marked by a red band toward their bases. The daisy-like heads consist of showy outer ray flowers and a central disk of many small tubular flowers. Flowering begins in the first year from seed. Photographed in Colombia.