Majorette Pink Halo Gerbera Daisy Seeds

Certain to become your favorite cutflower, Majorette Pink Halo is a dream of gerbera, compact enough for containers but showy enough for the annual bed, and SO long-lasting in the vase. If you love fresh, pretty color that brings in butterflies, this is one you've simply got to grow.

Far more compact than older gerberas, Majorette holds its blooms upright on thick, sturdy stems. No more florist's wire needed to angle the flowerhead upwards; Pink Halo smiles back at you all day long.

The blooms begin in early to midsummer and continue all season, fully 3 inches or more across and boasting a brown center, purplish halo, and light white ring at the base of the long, slender, tightly packed pink petals. They are just made for cutting, lasting a long time in the vase and outshining just about every other summer garden flower.

Majorette Pink Halo is just 12 inches high and not quite as wide, suitable for a 6- or 8-inch pot as well as the annual bed. A sun-lover, it appreciates regular feeding and watering, and needs good soil drainage. Gerbera is actually a tender perennial, but it flowers best the first year, and is grown as an annual almost everywhere.

One of the best features of this gerbera is that it was bred specifically for strong, non-stretching stems and uniform plant size. (That's where the term "majorette" comes in—think of a line of beautifully costumed twirlers.) This makes it terrific for a larger planting. The blooms often arise earlier than others, giving you a bit of a longer season. You'll love how eager to please this Gerber Daisy is.

Sow the seeds uncovered (or dropped into the pre-drilled holes of the sponges in your Bio Dome at about 72 degrees Fahrenheit, or direct sow outdoors when the soil is thoroughly warm in spring. If starting indoors, the seeds should sprout within two weeks, and can be grown on at 72 to 75 degrees Fahrenheit with plenty of light and fairly high humidity. (Again, in the Bio Dome, leave the dome on, vents open, until the seedlings outgrow their space or become too crowded in the tray.)

Transplant when the seedlings have at least two sets of true leaves and the soil is completely warm in spring. Or move them into their container with a good potting mix. So easy and so rewarding over a long midsummer into fall season. Hardy in zones 8-11, they are grown as annuals everywhere else.