Life History

Oxeye daisy is a perennial forb that reproduces by seeds and rhizomes. Seed production potential is tremendous. One study in England found 250 seeds per flowerhead. A vigorous plant is reported to produce about 26,000 seeds, and smaller plants produce 1,300 to 4,000 seeds per plant. An infested pasture was calculated to produce 10,710 seeds/square meter. In one pasture, the seed bank in the top 18 centimeters of soil was estimated at 6.6 million/hectare. A seed burial study measured seed viability after six years at 82 percent, and 1 percent were viable after 39 years. Thus, the above- mentioned pasture could have 66,000 viable seeds/hectare (27,710 seeds/acre) in the soil after 39 years of continuous oxeye daisy control.

Seeds set mostly in August. Achenes ripen rapidly and seeds are viable ten days after flowers open. There are no mechanisms of seed dormancy and germination can occur throughout the year when conditions are favorable. Establishment from seed is most common in the spring. Seedlings have a relatively high rate of survival and demonstrate tolerance to drought. Rhizomes develop when seedlings are at the sixth-leaf stage. Stems emerge from rhizome buds in April and May. A single plant can form many rosettes, each rosette producing one flowering stem. Plants flower in June, July, and August as long as soil moisture is available for active growth. Plants die back to the ground under drought conditions but rosettes can grow from rhizomes when fall moisture and temperature conditions are favorable. Over-wintering buds are on rhizomes at or near the soil surface. The longevity of individual plants or rhizomes has not been determined.

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Last Modified: 03/20/2008