Berlandiera lyrata

Walking past this native perennial on a warm sunny morning can cause you to suddenly crave fresh baked brownies. The pleasant chocolatey fragrance it puts out lets you know immediately the plant was appropriately named. In Oklahoma, it is found growing in dry rocky limestone soils in the panhandle and a few southwest counties. So full sun, good drainage and dry conditions are essential. Chocolate Flower features attractive yellow daisies with maroon central disk. The ray florets, “petals”, have red stripes on their underneath sides. With a long bloom period from April to October, this butterfly attracting plant produces its seeds via the ray florets rather than the disk florets, which is a bit odd among daisies.