Leucanthemum 'Luna'

Turning from soft yellow to creamy white like a harvest moon slowly rising in the night sky, Leucanthemum 'Luna' is an amazing Shasta for your sunny border and best container. These big double pompons are a different mix of yellow, cream, and white almost every day, and you'll love admiring them over the many weeks of their long season.

Fully 4 inches wide, these blooms have a pompon shape. They open a nice duckling shade of yellow, keeping this color for a week or two before beginning to display some cream accents. One day you'll realize they really aren't yellow anymore—they are definitely a milky shade. And before you know it, they are pure white.

Butterflies study these petals closely, visiting frequently to add their bright color to the show. The flowers are also magnificent for cutting, of course, and it's fun to try to capture the pure yellow, the bicolor, the solid cream, and the pure white all together in the vase. The blooms are held on strong, supple stems that hold up well after cutting.

Like most Shastas, Leucanthemum 'Luna' has very dark green foliage and excellent branching. Unlike most older varieties, it also boasts a rounded, very full habit, almost like a chrysanthemum. Very showy!

Expect Leucanthemum 'Luna' to reach about 22 inches high and maybe a couple inches less in width. The flowers begin in early summer in most climates, opening from big, rounded buds that are themselves beautiful. With any luck, the flower show continues all season.

Give Leucanthemum 'Luna' well-drained, organically enriched soil in full sun. This is not a plant that loves poor soil and rough conditions—pamper it, and it will repay you richly, year after year.