Jun 11, 2026 / By Anas Heaba / in Growing Guides
The English Daisy, sold across Egyptian seed shops under the name bakart (Arabic: بكرت), is one of the most charming cool-season flowers you can add to a winter garden. Its botanical name is Bellis perennis (family Asteraceae), and it is also known as the lawn daisy, common daisy or double daisy. The cultivars sold here form tight, double pompon blooms in red, pink and white on a neat little plant only about 15 cm tall. (You may see the name "Bocquetia floribunda" printed on some packets, but that is not a valid botanical name; the correct accepted name is Bellis perennis L.)
English Daisy is a cool-season plant that loves the mild Egyptian winter. It grows vigorously at around 10-21 C and starts to decline above roughly 24 C, so it will not survive a hot Egyptian summer. The trick is simple: treat it as a winter annual rather than a perennial. In return you get a low, tidy rosette covered in button-like double flowers from mid-winter into spring, ideal for borders, edging, pots and balcony boxes. It is also refreshingly trouble-free, with no major pest or disease problems.
Sow in autumn, roughly from late August through October, so the plants flower through Egypt's mild winter and into spring (about December to March). In the Nile Delta and along the cooler Mediterranean coast such as Alexandria, sow in September-October for a long winter-to-spring display. In hotter Upper Egypt (Aswan, Luxor), wait until October-November once the worst heat has passed, give afternoon shade, and aim to finish the crop before the sharp spring temperature rise. If you sow at the warm end of the window, start the seed in shaded nursery trays first.
This is a surface-sowing flower. Press the fine seed onto moist, well-prepared soil and barely cover it (no more than about 3 mm), because light helps it germinate. You can sow into cell packs, seed trays or directly into fine, moist garden soil. Keep the temperature around 21 C and the seed will sprout in about 15-25 days. You can also start seedlings indoors or in a shaded nursery about 8-10 weeks before planting out. Once seedlings are established, transplant them about 15 cm apart so each rosette has room to fill out.
English Daisy likes heavy fertility, so plant it in organically rich, fertile soil. Work plenty of compost or well-rotted organic matter into the bed before planting, then feed early in the growing season to support strong flowering. An early-season feed as the plants settle in gives you fuller rosettes and more blooms through the winter.
Keep the soil consistently moist; this is not a drought-tolerant plant. Water regularly so the soil stays moist but never waterlogged, paying special attention during warmer spells. The ideal soil is moist but well-drained, rich and fertile, though the plant tolerates a wide range of textures (clay, loam, sand, chalk) and a wide pH range from acid to alkaline. Choose a spot in full sun to partial shade; in warmer parts of Egypt afternoon shade keeps the plants happier and prolongs the display.
English Daisy is grown for its flowers, not for harvest in the usual sense. It forms a low rosette about 8-15 cm tall and blooms from mid-winter into spring under Egyptian conditions. To keep it flowering longer and to limit self-seeding, deadhead the spent blooms regularly. You can also snip the small flowers for tiny posies. Once the spring heat climbs past the mid-20s C, the plants fade, which is your cue to clear them and plan the next season.
For reliable results, start with quality seed and healthy plants. At tna W rna you can pick up English Daisy (Bellis) seeds to raise your own seedlings, or skip ahead with ready-grown bakart plants if you would rather transplant. If you simply want the finished colour for a winter border or balcony, browse our English Daisy flowers and plant them out in autumn for a cheerful winter-to-spring show.
Jun 11, 2026 by Anas Heaba
Jun 11, 2026 by Anas Heaba
