As long ago as December 2009 I looked forward to the arrival of a new yellow-flowered Shasta daisy, Leucanthemum ‘Banana Cream’, I’d seen across the Atlantic but it seems to have taken until this year to appear. It’s in the batch of new RHS Plantfinder introductions for 2012 listed by half a dozen different suppliers.
This is generally reckoned to be the best yellow-flowered Shasta daisy yet, but it also has other valuable qualities. Each 4in/10cm wide flower opens in lemon yellow and then, as it matures, changes to butter yellow; there are other varieties that open yellow, but they tend to fade to cream. Each flower also has a double row of petals, giving the flowers extra substance.
What’s more, as you can see from the picture (click to enlarge), flower buds develop not only at the tips of the shoots but also in the leaf joints farther down the stem. This leads to a much extended summer flowering season. When cut, the flowers also last up to two weeks in water yet are carried on plants no more than 18in/45cm tall.
The plants are also vigorous, and increase well, and the foliage tends to be less prone to disease than in older varieties. ‘Banana Cream’ was developed in Michigan by Kevin Hurd at Walters Gardens, one of North America’s best known perennial growers.
Source: My Garden – Leucanthemum ‘Banana Cream’: New for 2012
