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Oxeye daisy or English daisy

Updated: 21 October 2026

You want a white daisy with a yellow eye, and the two native plants that match that photo are not interchangeable. Oxeye daisy or English daisy is a height decision before it is a brand decision. Oxeye, Leucanthemum vulgare, is a meadow perennial the RHS lists at up to 90 cm. English daisy, Bellis perennis, is a rosette to about 10 cm. In the nine packets on the [Daisy seeds](/hub/seeds-and-plants/daisy-seeds) comparison, three listings are oxeye and one is Pomponette, a double bedding strain of Bellis, not the wild lawn single. If you wanted a frost-tender carpet, use the [daisy seeds buying guide](/hub/seeds-and-plants/daisy-seeds/sub/daisy-seeds-buying-guide). Links to Amazon are affiliate links.

You want a white daisy with a yellow eye, and the two native plants that match that photo are not interchangeable. Oxeye daisy or English daisy is a height decision before it is a brand decision.

Our top picks

JustSeed JustSeed oxeye daisy, 3 g

Best overall

JustSeed JustSeed oxeye daisy, 3 g
7.4/10about £4.25
View offer
Mr Fothergill's Mr Fothergill's oxeye daisy

Rank 2

Mr Fothergill's Mr Fothergill's oxeye daisy
6.4/10about £3.79
View offer
Generic Nika English daisy Pomponette

Rank 3

Generic Nika English daisy Pomponette
3.6/10about £2.95
View offer
On this page
  1. 1.The tall meadow daisy
  2. 2.The low lawn daisy
  3. 3.When to pick which

The tall meadow daisy

Oxeye is the plant of sunny grass that is allowed to grow. The Woodland Trust describes flower heads of about 3–5 cm, against lawn-daisy heads of about 2 cm. The RHS species page goes to 90 cm. A UK cottage-garden seller warns that oxeye can take over a fine border. It was not on the Schedule 9 tables checked. JustSeed, at about £4.25, says 65 cm and Leucanthemum vulgare. Mr Fothergill's, at about £3.79, says 60 cm and flowers the year after sowing, without the Latin name. Damavand, at about £3.19, says 40 cm. Treat 40 cm as the odd claim. The top pick remains JustSeed because the name, the count, and 4.2 from 606 reviews line up, not because 65 cm was measured in a trial. Plants that return and spread suit a meadow. That habit is not a reason to call the species invasive in law.

The low lawn daisy

Bellis perennis keeps its leaves in a basal rosette. The monitoring guide gives stems to 15 cm and heads of about 1.5–3 cm. The RHS species page says about 10 cm, in sun or partial shade, and calls it native. That is the daisy in a British lawn in spring. It will tolerate a mower in a way oxeye will not. Sowing oxeye into that lawn will not produce more of the short flower. The only English daisy packet here is Nika Pomponette at about £2.95, a 15 cm biennial with double button flowers. The wild species is a perennial single to about 10 cm. The title says 450 seeds, the unit count 3,000, and the number of items 300. One UK review counted about 220. The line is 4.1 from 12. Written reviews include quick germination, a blank sowing, and ordinary straggly daisies rather than double buttons. If you need the wild single, this packet does not say that is what it is. There is no best-value badge, because the count does not agree with itself. Shasta daisy is not in this set.
JustSeed JustSeed oxeye daisy, 3 g

Testsieger

JustSeed JustSeed oxeye daisy, 3 g
7.4/10about £4.25
View offer

When to pick which

Choose oxeye when the site is sunny, the soil can be bare, and a plant of roughly 60–90 cm is welcome for more than one year. JustSeed is the packet the review file supports. Mr Fothergill's is the smaller count if you can live without a Latin name. Damavand is the named oxeye with a 40 cm line, a Dry Clean care line, and a thin sample. Choose Bellis when you want a low rosette at the front of a border. In this set that means Pomponette, and one review already contradicts the double-flower claim. A 15 cm plant will disappear under meadow grass, and oxeye will not stay a neat clump in a narrow border. Both species want light at sowing. Depth and the first-year wait are on how to sow daisy seeds.

Common questions

Which one belongs in a lawn?
Bellis perennis, about 10 cm on the RHS page. Oxeye is the meadow plant, up to 90 cm, with larger heads. Scattering oxeye into turf usually fails. Bellis is already common in lawns, which is not a reason to buy Pomponette and expect a wild single.
How tall is oxeye compared with the lawn daisy?
The RHS lists oxeye at up to 90 cm and Bellis at about 10 cm. The listings say 65 cm, 60 cm, and 40 cm for oxeye, and 15 cm for Pomponette. Use 60–90 cm for the meadow and about 10–15 cm for the lawn or bedding daisy. The 40 cm line does not sit with the other oxeye sources.
Will Pomponette look like the wild lawn daisy?
The listing says double button flowers on a 15 cm biennial. The wild species is a single daisy to about 10 cm. One UK review says the plants looked like ordinary straggly daisies. Another says the seed germinated quickly. Another says nothing grew. You might get a low daisy, and you should not count on the button flower. The count is unsettled: 450, 3,000, 300, and a buyer who counted about 220.
Can I put oxeye in a small formal border?
You can sow it, and you may regret the spread. A UK cottage-garden seller warns that oxeye can take over a fine border. JustSeed reviews include plants that return and spread. The larger review files state 60–65 cm, against an edge that usually wants the 10 cm Bellis. If the border is narrow, keep oxeye for a sunny meadow on bare soil.
Is oxeye invasive in the UK?
It was not on the Schedule 9 plant tables checked, and it is a native meadow flower. Native does not mean it stays where you put it. Established plants spread, and a cottage-garden seller warns that a fine border can be taken over. Do not dig it from the wild, and do not sow it on land you do not own. Bellis is native too, and it already lives in many lawns.

Related pages

Best daisy seeds

Daisy seeds

Daisy seeds UK: which plant the packet actually is

How to sow daisy seeds: surface, light, and timing

Livingstone daisy seeds UK: frost ends this summer

Sources

Sources taken from the research digest. Listings were checked in October 2026.

  1. RHS — Leucanthemum vulgare (retrieved 21.10.2026)
  2. RHS — How to sow a wildflower patch (retrieved 21.10.2026)
  3. RHS — Bellis perennis (retrieved 21.10.2026)
  4. RHS — Cleretum bellidiforme (retrieved 21.10.2026)
  5. RHS — Gerberas growing guide (retrieved 21.10.2026)
  6. RHS — How to grow erigeron (retrieved 21.10.2026)
  7. Seed Marketing Regulations 2011, regulation 4 (retrieved 21.10.2026)
  8. The Marketing of Ornamental Plant Propagating Material Regulations 1999 (retrieved 21.10.2026)
  9. Woodland Trust — Oxeye daisy (retrieved 21.10.2026)
  10. Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, Schedule 9 (retrieved 21.10.2026)
  11. RHS — Brachyscome iberidifolia (retrieved 21.10.2026)