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Arctotis acaulis 'Big Red' (Red African Daisy) - An evergreen groundcover that stays under 1 foot tall and spreads 2-3 feet and often much wider with velvety gray foliage and large 3 inch wide red daisy flowers with an orange ring in the center. Flowering begins in later winter and continues through summer.
Plant in full sun in a moderately well-draining soil where it has very low irrigation needs. It is cold hardy to 20-25 degrees F and useful in USDA Zone 9 and above.
Arctotis acaulis 'Big Red' is a year 2024 San Marcos Growers plant introduction that was a seedling from our Arctotis 'Big Magenta'. These plants are most likely Venidio-Arctotis hybrids or Arctotis Harlequin Hybrids (syn. Arctotis hybrida, X Venidioarctotis) which involved crossing and back crossing several species including Arctotis venusta grandis and Venidium [now Arctotis] fastuosa.
The genus name Arctotis is derived from Greek words 'arktos', which means "a bear" and 'otos' meaning "an ear" with the implication that the scales of the flower and fruit pappus look like the ears of a bear. The specific epithet means "without a stem", from the Greek words 'a' meaning "without" and 'caulis' (also spelled 'colis') meaning "stem of a plant" in reference to the growth habit of this species.
This information about Arctotis acaulis 'Big Red' displayed is based on research conducted in our horticultural library and from reliable online resources. We also will relate observations made about it as it grows in our nursery gardens and other gardens we have visited, as well how the crops have performed in containers in our nursery field. We will also incorporate comments that we receive from others and we welcome hearing from anyone with additional information, particularly if they can share any cultural information that would aid others in growing it.
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