The illustrated growing guide
Blanket Flower
Gaillardia × grandiflora
Family Asteraceae
Est. zones 3-9
Fiesta colors on a plant that treats a gravel driveway edge as luxury housing. Let a few heads seed and the patch renews itself indefinitely.
Full Sun
Low water
Fast growth
Attracts butterflies
Attracts beesI
Overview
Will blanket flower suit your garden, and what goes wrong.
Will it thrive where you are?
Enter your ZIP — we look up your USDA hardiness zone (2023 map) and check it against what blanket flower actually needs.
Hardy inZones 3-9Blanket Flower at a glance
Common blanket flower problems
- Almost none
- Aster Yellows (rogue out weird green blooms)
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Growing
Light, water, soil, propagation and the season’s jobs.
How to grow blanket flower: light, water & soil
How to plant & propagate blanket flower
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The year
What blanket flower asks for, month by month.
The blanket flower year, month by month
BloomPruneWhat each band means
- Bloom — flowers open — pollinators working, frost on blossoms is the danger.
- Prune — shape it now — cuts heal cleanly and structure is visible.
The blanket flower year as text
- Jan quiet month
- Feb quiet month
- Mar pruning
- Apr pruning
- May pruning
- Jun bloom
- Jul quiet month
- Aug quiet month
- Sep quiet month
- Oct quiet month
- Nov quiet month
- Dec quiet month
These are the species' typical months — expect them a few weeks earlier in warm zones and later in cold ones. Watch the plant, not just the calendar.
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Ecology & uses
What it does for the garden, and what it is grown for.
Blanket Flower in the garden system
- Herbaceous layer perennial
- Nectary/insectary
What blanket flower is grown for
✓ Not known to be toxic
Edibility, identification, and traditional-use notes here are general reference — not medical or veterinary advice, and not a claim that any plant treats or prevents anything. Medicinal ratings record how strongly a plant features in herbal tradition, nothing more. Never eat or dose a plant you have not positively identified. More on how to use this library.
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Cultivars
Named varieties of blanket flower, ruled as a catalogue.
Best blanket flower varieties & cultivars
'Arizona Sun' (compact); 'Goblin'; 'Mesa' series
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Sources & plant ID
Where the care distinctions come from, and how the plant is filed.
Research basis
Sources behind this profile
No extension citations are attached to blanket floweryet. The care figures below come from the library's own catalogue rather than a traced primary source.
Plant ID
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Where to buy
Third-party nurseries — not Story Thyme Farms.
Third-party nurseries, not Story Thyme Farms. Prices are theirs.
Story Thyme Farms may earn a small commission from these links, at no cost to you — it never changes what we recommend.
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Questions
Blanket Flower questions, answered straight.
Is blanket flower safe for kids and pets?
Blanket Flower is commonly eaten and isn't considered toxic, but "commonly eaten" isn't a guarantee for any particular person or animal — allergies, quantity, and which part you eat all matter. Never eat a plant you haven't positively identified, and check with a vet before letting pets or livestock graze anything new.
How do you propagate blanket flower?
Division or seed.
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Elsewhere
Where blanket flower sits in the library.
Sunflower
Zinnia
Peony
Daylily