Named after French-Swiss physician Jean-Louis Berlandier, who gathered plants in Texas and northern Mexico in the 1800's. Chocolate daisy is a mounding perennial wildflower native to the southwestern USA and Mexico in the Asteraceae (daisy) family. Its common name is derived from the scent of its flowers that smell like chocolate. Also referred to as 'green-eyes' comes from the green disk shaped flower center that remain after the petals fall off. Its native habitat includes dry, rocky limestone with well-drained soil, which also includes other disturbed locations such as roadsides, vacant lots, plains, mesas, grasslands and other disturbed soil locations. When conditions become too wet, the plant can topple over. However, branchlets will form along the prone stem. From these branchlets, additional flowers will bloom. In the proper conditions, i.e. warm weather, it will flower year round. It can be mowed in the early part of the summer after the first bloom. It will again grow and flower. Deadheading will also lead to continuous flowering. Its seed can be collected year round. Division in not a recommended method for propagation as the long taproot can be damaged. Its flowers can be used as a seasoning. Insects, Diseases, and Other Plant Problems: Heavy soil with wet conditions can lead to root rot.
Curated pairwise relationships between this plant and others in the library — who feeds
whom, who competes, who confuses the pests. Green reads as a good pairing, red as one to avoid.
No curated interactions recorded for this species yet.
Also noted by NC State
Related species the NC State Plant Toolbox flags for this plant — look-alikes to tell
apart, and plants that play a similar role in a planting. Ones we carry in the library are linked.
Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day) | Partial Shade (Direct sunlight only part of the day, 2-6 hours)
Soil texture
Clay; Loam (Silt); Sand; Shallow Rocky
Soil pH
Alkaline (>8.0)
Soil drainage
Good Drainage | Moist | Occasionally Dry
Available space
12 inches-3 feet
NC region
Coastal; Mountains; Piedmont
Mature size
Height: 1 ft. 0 in. - 2 ft. 0 in. | Width: 1 ft. 0 in. - 2 ft. 0 in.
Growth rate
Medium
Maintenance
Low
Canopy layer
4 - Herbaceous (1-3 ft)
Form & Appearance
Habit / form
Mounding
Texture
Medium
Leaf color
Gray/Silver; Green
Leaf type
Compound (Pinnately , Bipinnately, Palmately)
Leaf arrangement
Alternate
Leaf shape
Oblanceolate; Obovate; Spatulate
Leaf margin
Crenate; Entire
Leaf feel
Velvety
Leaf size
3-6 inches long, 1-3 inches wide
Hairs present
No
Leaf detail
The lower leaves have short branches at the base of the plant and longer branches that end with a leafless stalks where its flowers heads bloom. The underside is a lighter green to white.
Flower color
Gold/Yellow
Flower value
Fragrant; Showy
Flower form
Head; Solitary
Flower shape
Cup
Flower size
1-3 inches
Flower detail
Yellow ray flowers with a reddish/brown center. The flowers will open in the morning, but begin to droop as the heat of the day sets in. As the petals are plucked, the scent of chocolate can be detected. The lower side of the petals have red veins or can be entirely red.
Bloom time
Fall; Spring; Summer
Fruit detail
The fruit is a flattened pubescent cypsela (a dry, single seeded fruit).
Stem detail
The stems can be branched. They are striped with parallel lines.
Wildlife & Ecology
Native status
Native
Origin
Southwestern USA, Mexico
Distribution
AZ, CO, KS, NM, OK, TX
Wildlife value
Bees, butterflies and birds are attracted to this plant.