I know I haven’t been posting as often as I should lately.  So here’s a nice picture to get back in the groove.

I love this photo and had fun trying to get the shot.  Let me know what you think of this pic:

The plant is Gaillardia aestivalis var. winkleri ‘Grape Sensation’

Otherwise known by its common name:  Winkler’s White Firewheel-Purple selection.  That’s a mouthful, but you could just call it Purple Firewheel.

This cultivar (cultivated variety) is a selection by the Stephen F. Austin State University Mast Arboretum in
Nacogdoches, Texas in honor of the school color.

The natural variety is white with a yellow center and is found only in one county in Texas.  Gaillardia
aestivalis depends on fire to reduce competition in its native habitat (hence the common name).

See more on the plant and its development here.

And more on the variety, winkleri.

This plant was growing at the JC Raulston Arboretum in Raleigh, NC.