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Tansy

Tanacetum vulgare

Also listed as Chrysanthemum vulgare, Pyrethrum vulgare

Also known as Common Tansy, Golden Buttons, Garden Tansy

herbaceous☀️ full sun💧 low water❄ Hardy: Zone 3a – Zone 8b

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Tansy is a vigorous perennial with finely divided, feathery foliage and flat clusters of bright yellow button-like flowers. It is drought-tolerant and spreads readily, making it useful for naturalizing but potentially invasive in some regions.

Why grow it

Tansy offers reliable drought tolerance and persistent flowering through mid-to-late summer, making it useful for dry-site perennial borders where water availability is limited. Its finely textured foliage provides visual interest even before bloom, and the flat flower clusters attract beneficial insects. Compared to other drought-tolerant yellows like yarrow, tansy flowers later in the season and tolerates heavier soils more readily.

Watch out for

Tansy spreads vigorously by rhizomes and self-seeding, so containment may be necessary in smaller gardens to prevent it from outcompeting neighboring plantings. Its rapid spread can make it difficult to remove once established. Deadheading spent flowers will reduce unwanted seedling recruitment.

Overview

Form
Upright
Growth Rate
fast
Size
2–3′ tall × 1.5–2.5′ wide
Dormancy
deciduous
Family
Asteraceae
MedicinalDynamic accumulatorBiomass and mulch

Native Range

Europe and Western Asia

Seasonality

Bloom Season

J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D

Season of Interest

SummerFall

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Companion Planting

Plants well with