Herb · Asteraceae
Feverfew
Tanacetum parthenium
Hand it full sun and lean, dry soil, and feverfew rewards you with white daisies all summer long.
Full sun
Every 7–14 days
90–120 days
USDA 5–9
Overview
Feverfew is a tough, cheerful perennial in the daisy family, covered through the warm months in small white flowers with bright yellow centers. It grows fast and asks for very little, which is why it has spread from old cottage gardens into beds, borders, and herb patches across cooler climates. The aromatic, ferny leaves give it away as a member of the Tanacetum clan, close kin to tansy and the chrysanthemums.
It earns its keep two ways. The daisies are a long-running source of cut flowers and a magnet for pollinators, and the plant carries a long history in folk medicine that lives on in its name. Left to its own devices it self-sows hard, so it can drift from a tidy clump into a loose colony in a season or two.
None of that makes it hard to grow. Give feverfew sun, soil that drains, and a haircut when it finishes blooming, and it comes back year after year and seeds in the gaps besides. The one thing to watch is the spread, which a little deadheading keeps in check.
Care
The short version: full sun, lean and well-drained soil, and a deep drink only when the top half of the soil has dried out. Deadhead through the season, shear it back after bloom, and it largely looks after itself.
Light
Feverfew flowers best in full sun and will take light partial shade. Push it into deeper shade and you trade flowers for floppy, leggy growth, so give it the brightest spot you have.
Water
Once it's settled in, feverfew is drought-tolerant and hates wet feet. Water deeply but only when the top half of the soil has dried, which works out to roughly every 7 to 14 days, and let it dry between drinks.
Soil
Plain, well-drained garden soil suits it fine, and it even shrugs off poor, dry ground. Aim for a pH between 6.0 and 7.5, and make sure water drains freely, since soggy soil is the one thing it won't forgive.
Temperature
Feverfew is genuinely hardy, taking cold down to about -20°F (-29°C) and shrugging off summer heat up to 90°F (32°C). That range lets it overwinter as a perennial across a wide stretch of temperate gardens.
Humidity
Ordinary outdoor air is all it needs, so there's no number to chase. It sits happily in the 40% to 60% range that most gardens see, and good airflow matters more than the reading.
Feeding
This is a light feeder that actually does better in lean soil. A single light dose of balanced fertilizer or a little compost in spring is plenty, and heavy feeding only gives you soft growth that flops and draws aphids.
Pruning
Deadhead spent flowers through the season to keep the bloom going and curb its heavy self-seeding. Shear the plant back hard after it finishes flowering to bring on compact regrowth, then cut it down in late fall or early spring.
Repotting
If you grow feverfew in a container, repot it annually or whenever it outgrows the pot. Roots circling the soil, a drop in vigor, or soil that dries out almost as fast as you water are the signs it's ready for fresh room.
Size & spacing
Plants reach 18 to 35 inches (45 to 90 cm) tall and form clumps 12 to 24 inches (30 to 60 cm) across. Give each one that much room so air moves freely and the roots don't sit in trapped moisture.
When to plant
Feverfew runs on the seasons. Start seed indoors 6 to 8 weeks before your last frost or sow it straight in the ground come spring, set young plants out once the cold has passed, and the white daisies open from early summer right through fall.
Northern hemisphere
Southern hemisphere
Typical months for a temperate climate: start earlier in warm zones, later where spring frosts linger.
- Sow: 6-8 weeks before last frost
- Plant: Spring after danger of frost has passed
- Harvest: White daisy-like flowers with yellow centers from early-mid summer through fall; long bloom period
Hardiness
USDA hardiness zones: 5–9
Temperature: down to -29°C
Troubleshooting
Feverfew is rarely troubled, and most of what goes wrong traces back to too much water, too little sun, or its own eagerness to seed. Match what you're seeing below, then step in early while the fix is simple.
Wilting and yellowing despite wet, soggy soil
When a plant wilts even though the soil stays moist, suspect root rot from drainage that can't keep up. Dig at the base and you'll find brown, soft, foul-smelling roots that can no longer feed the plant. Cut back on water and improve the drainage, pull out any plant that's too far gone, and replant healthy divisions where water won't pool.
Fix:
- Improve drainage and reduce watering
- Remove and discard severely affected plants
- Replant healthy divisions in well-drained soil
Volunteer seedlings popping up all over the bed
Feverfew is a prolific self-seeder, and a single plant can carpet the ground around it with young volunteers the next season. The fix is to deadhead before the flowers set seed, which stops the spread at the source. Any seedlings that do appear pull out easily by hand while they're small.
Fix:
- Deadhead before seed set
- Remove unwanted seedlings by hand while young
Curled, sticky leaves with clusters of tiny insects
This is an aphid infestation, and the soft-bodied insects gather on tender new growth and the undersides of leaves. They leave a sticky honeydew behind that curls and distorts the foliage. Blast them off with a strong jet of water, follow up with insecticidal soap if the colony is heavy, and let ladybugs do the rest.
Fix:
- Spray with a strong jet of water to dislodge aphids
- Apply insecticidal soap if infestation is heavy
- Encourage beneficial predators such as ladybugs
Few flowers or a bloom that fades fast
Thin flowering usually comes down to too little sun or skipped deadheading. A plant tucked in shade simply makes fewer buds, and one left to set seed slows its own show. Move it into full sun and snip off the spent daisies as they fade, and it keeps blooming from early summer well into fall.
Fix:
- Relocate to a full-sun position
- Deadhead spent flowers regularly to encourage continued bloom
Toxicity
Feverfew is a useful garden plant, but it isn't one to eat or graze. The leaves carry sesquiterpene lactones that irritate the mouth and gut of cats, dogs, and horses, and the same compounds give sensitive people contact dermatitis and mouth ulcers. Wear gloves when you handle it and keep pets and children from chewing the foliage.
Toxic to
Cats · Dogs · Horses · Rabbits · Livestock · Birds · People
Cats Mild
A cat that chews the leaves usually drools and vomits, and the stomach upset can run to diarrhea. The sap may also irritate the mouth or leave a rash where it touches skin.
Dogs Mild
Expect drooling and an upset stomach after a dog nibbles the foliage, sometimes with loose stools. Contact with the sap can redden the mouth or irritate the skin.
Horses Mild
Grazing horses can react to the bitter foliage with mouth irritation, drooling, and a mild bout of colic or loose manure. They tend to leave it alone given a choice.
Rabbits Caution
The same sesquiterpene lactones that bother other animals make this a poor choice for rabbits, so keep it out of the hutch and off the forage list to be safe.
Livestock Caution
Cattle, sheep, and goats generally avoid the bitter leaves, but the plant's compounds can irritate the gut if they're forced to eat it, so don't rely on it as fodder.
Birds Caution
There's little to suggest feverfew is safe for pet or backyard birds, and the irritant oils argue against it, so keep the plant well away from cages and aviaries.
People Caution
Handling the foliage can bring on contact dermatitis in sensitive people, and chewing fresh leaves often causes mouth ulcers and irritation. Wear gloves when you cut it back and wash your hands afterward.
Wear gloves when handling foliage; sesquiterpene lactones can cause contact dermatitis in sensitive people, and chewing fresh leaves can cause mouth irritation and ulcers.
Helpline numbers
United States
ASPCA Animal Poison Control: (888) 426-4435 (fee applies)
Poison Control: (800) 222-1222
Canada
Poison Centres: 1-844-764-7669
Varieties
Beyond the plain white daisy, a few selections are worth knowing, grown for double flowers or for colored leaves.
'Aureum' (Golden Feather)
This one is grown for its bright chartreuse-gold leaves rather than its flowers, so it earns a spot as a foliage plant.
'Flore Pleno'
It trades the simple daisy for fully double, button-like white flowers packed with petals.
'Snowball'
Its blooms are rounded white pompons, a tidy double form that reads almost like a small chrysanthemum.
How to propagate
Feverfew multiplies with almost no effort, whether you sow seed or split an established clump, and it cheerfully sows itself on top of that.
SeedEasy
Sow indoors 6-8 weeks before last frost or direct sow in spring; surface sow as seeds need light to germinate · Germination in 1-2 weeks; flowering plants within the first season
Feverfew grows easily from seed sown indoors 6 to 8 weeks before your last frost, or direct sown in spring. Press the seed onto the surface and don't bury it, since it needs light to sprout, and you'll see germination in 1 to 2 weeks. Plants raised this way flower in their first season, and the plant self-sows so freely you can lift and move volunteers while they're young.
DivisionEasy
Spring or early fall · Several weeks to re-establish in the season of division
Dividing a mature clump in spring or early fall both rejuvenates a tired plant and gives you copies that come true to type. Lift the clump, split it into rooted sections, and replant. The divisions take a few weeks to settle in and carry on through the same season.
Myths
Feverfew gets its name because it reliably cures fevers.
The name does trace back to the Latin febrifugia, meaning fever reducer, which points to how it was once used. But the traditional and the modern studied use both center on headache and migraine instead. It was never a dependable fever remedy, and the name is a leftover from old folk medicine.