English Daisy (Bellis perennis)

(Fig. 01)

Picture Notes: I spotted this flower (Fig. 01) on 06/05/2013 at the top of Wheeler Pass in the Spring Mountains. Even though I hiked around this area, it was the only one I could find here. Because some of the descriptions I read seem to identify this as a domesticated plant, hence the name Lawn Daisy, I wonder how did it get here in the first place.

Description: English Daisy (Bellis perennis), a.k.a. Common Daisy, European Daisy and Lawn Daisy, is a common European species of daisy, of the Asteraceae family, native to western, central and northern Europe, but widely naturalised in most temperate regions including the Americas. This is a herbaceous perennial; sometimes evergreen with short creeping rhizomes and small rounded or spoon-shaped rosettes of leaves that are from 3/4 to 2 inches long and grow flat to the ground,may form large colonies. It is a low, mat-forming to prostrate with upright leafless stems. Its lower leafs are small, oval, 1-2 inchs long, in basal rosette. The flower head is .75 to 1.5 inches in diameter, with white ray florets (often tipped red) and yellow disc florets. Although the 'flower' may appear to consist of a yellow center with white petals, this is not the case. Each individual "petal" is itself an individual flower, called asterales. In the center there are also many tiny yellow flowers. They are produced on leafless stems 3/4 - 4 inches, rarely 6 inches tall. This type of flower is known as a composite flower. It flowers from spring to summer and is considered weedy or invasive in some locations. It is thought that the name "daisy" is a corruption of "day's eye", because the whole head closes at night and opens in the morning.