Plants and Profits: <i>Helenium</i>

Suggest Helenium when customers ask for . . .

• A colorful and cheery native plant
• Something that’s “daisy-like”
• An alternative for echinacea and/or rudbeckia
• A perennial that doesn’t require regular fertilization
• Something for a sunny border

{The story}
Plants in the genus Helenium are members of the family Asteraceae, and sport daisy-like flowers anywhere from mid June to late autumn, depending upon which of the approximately 40 species the plant derives from, and of course, the local climate. Helenium are native to North and Central America and are yet another of our native plants that have achieved fame and acceptance in Europe while being virtually ignored here at home. www.PerennialandNurseryNews.com

Display and marketing possibilities

• Include in a daisy-theme display showing the various perennials that have a daisy-like form and habit.
• Include select cultivars in your handouts listing perennials that make good cut flowers.
• Display Helenium with your native plant selections.
• Cross merchandise Helenium with water features. In the wild these plants are found growing in moist to wet conditions in sunny meadows and stream banks.
• During the dog-days of summer, create a display that includes Helenium and other plants that add spark to landscapes when other flowers have faded.