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Native Plant Society of Texas

Lazy Daisy

Aphanostephus skirrhobasis

Other common name(s):

Arkansas Lazy Daisy, Arkansas Doze-daisy

Family:

Asteraceae (Aster Family)

Plant Ecoregion Distribution Map

This map uses data from the US EPA. EPA  servers have been offline frequently so maps may not display. We are working on a solution.

Central Great Plains, Cross Timbers, East Central Texas Plains, Edwards Plateau, Gulf Coast Prairies and Marshes, High Plains, Southern Texas Plains, Southwestern Tablelands, Texas Blackland Prairies, Western Gulf Coastal Plain
Broken Red Plains, Limestone Plains, Red Prairie
Carbonate Cross Timbers, Eastern Cross Timbers, Grand Prairie, Limestone Cut Plain, Western Cross Timbers
Bastrop Lost Pines, Floodplains and Low Terraces2, Northern Post Oak Savanna, Northern Prairie Outliers, San Antonio Prairie, Southern Post Oak Savanna
Balcones Canyonlands, Edwards Plateau Woodland, Llano Uplift
Coastal Sand Plain, Floodplains and Low Terraces4, Laguna Madre Barrier Island and Coastal Marshes, Lower Rio Grande Alluvial Floodplain, Lower Rio Grande Valley, Mid-Coast Barrier Islands and Coastal Marshes, Northern Humid Gulf Coastal Prairies, Southern Subhumid Gulf Coastal Prairies, Texas-Louisiana Coastal Marshes
Arid Llano Estacado, Llano Estacado, Rolling Sand Plains, Shinnery Sands
Northern Nueces Alluvial Plains, Rio Grande Floodplain and Terraces, Semiarid Edwards Bajada, Texas-Tamaulipan Thornscrub
Caprock Canyons Badlands Breaks, Flat Tablelands and Valleys, Semiarid Canadian Breaks
Floodplains and Low Terraces1, Northern Blackland Prairie, Southern Blackland Prairie
Flatwoods

Plant Characteristics

Growth Form

Herbaceous

Height

1
to
2
ft.

Spread

.5
to
1
ft.

Leaf Retention

Deciduous

Lifespan

Annual

Habitat and Care Requirements

Soil Type(s)

Caliche, Dry, Loam, Sand, Well Drained

Light Requirement

Sun

Water Requirement

Very Low, Low

Native Habitat

Grassland, Savanna, Woodland Edge

Bloom and Attraction

Bloom Color

Purple, White

Bloom Season

Spring, Summer, Fall

Seasonal Interest

Flowers, Nectar, Pollen

Wildlife Benefit

Bees, Butterflies

Maintenance

It’s common name ‘Lazy Daisy’ comes from it’s habit of waiting until midday to open it’s flowers. It is a very hardy flower and drought tolerant. In the garden it grows into a low colorful mound of white blossoms, which works well in the front of beds or dotted amongst low growing grasses. It is good at self seeding so it can stick around in your beds for many years. Plants are not common in nurseries but seeds are commercially available. Native habitat: grasslands, meadows, pastures, savannas, and edges of woodlands.

Description

Blooms March-November. Mound to sprawling forming. Stems and leaves have soft hairs. Lower leaves narrow and sharply toothed, the upper ones smooth. The white blossoms are pink on the underside, one flower to a stem. Flowers with yellow-orange disc flowers in the center and white outer ray flowers. The fruit is a cypsela: a dry, one-seeded fruit, usually topped by pappus.

References

About the Region

2026 Fall Symposium Logo

This low-elevations region of Texas extends inland from the barrier islands, about 60 or so miles, and stretches from Brownsville to Louisiana. In total, it covers about 9.5 million acres, with a high point of 150 feet in elevation. More than 1000 species of plants can be found in this region. On the southern end, species more common in Mexico (such as Sabal mexicana) and Central America occur.

The barrier islands provide us with dune systems, and clay flats to the inland side, which have species found in these areas alone. Many plants here, such as Ipomoea pes-caprae (beach morning glory), can be found throughout tropical regions of the globe. I’ve encountered the same species on the beaches of Guam.

Once inland, vast marshes and wet prairies occur. Occasionally, oak (Quercus fusiformis) groves can be found. Common grasses include species of Bothriochloa, Paspalum, and Sporobolus; eastern gamagrass (Tripsacum dactyloides); and switchgrass (Panicum species). Many rivers and creeks cut through the Gulf Prairies, and along these riparian areas various species of trees, Sabal minor, and other plants adapted to clay soils can be found. Due to overgrazing, farming, and fire suppression, woody species such as mesquite (Prosopis glandulosa) and huisache (Acacia farnesiana), and invasive species such as chinaberry (Melia azedarach), Brazilian pepper (Schinus terebinthifolius), and Chinese tallow (Sapium sebiferum) have increased and displaced our native flora.

Source: Wildflowers of Texas by Michael Eason