Cinerarias are most commonly grown as House Plants, but require cool night temperatures if you want an extended blooming period. They prefer to be somewhat rootbound. They can be grown as an annual and will reseed themselves in a cool, shady area of the garden. They are not suited for hot dry climates....
The plants grow to 12-15" tall but C. stellata may reach 30", the flowers are 3-5" and can be found in shades of red, pink, purple, blue or white...
More about growing Cineraria plants

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Your pictures are so beautiful, Bill! You've inspired me. Now all my flowers have to pose for closeups! Am really enjoying taking pictures of them.

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Gardeners know the best dirt.

I'm very happy that I have inspired you to save the beauty of your flowers. When I was still married I used to beg my ex to photograph the cacti flowers in the greenhouses. She was always too busy to oblidge, and of course I wasn't competent enough to use her camera so now I can only rely on my memory to try to explain the beauty I enjoyed. I wish that I could show you what I used to enjoy every day.
Unfortunately, we all lose our plants over time, so if you get the chance to save the beauty that Mother Nature let you enjoy, by all means try to catch it on film or with your digital camera. That way you will always be able to share what you've grown, regardless of the season or the status of the plant.
Getting your flower to "pose" for you sounds a lot easier than it is. As with all art, the beauty may be in the eye of the beholder and sometimes the photos you take may be far below the image quality you hoped for, but at least you will be able to look back and remember why you liked the flower so well. If you're lucky enough to have a digital camera, don't be afraid to snap a dozen or more pictures of the same flower from different angles and at different times of the day. Lighting can be critical in accomplishing the effect you desire, as well as a myriad of other outside influences. That's how I have managed to accrue over 11,000 photos in my collection. Maybe, if I'm lucky I have 500 of what I consider to be good photos in my collection, but even a bad picture is better than no picture at all.
I have kicked myself more times than I care to remember for not thinking ahead and photographing my new gardens before they became gardens. Usually I am half way done with my project when I realize that I didn't catch a pix of the area when it was a blackberry bramble... but by then it is too late. If you are creating a new garden, snap a few pix before you start.... It may seem pointless when the garden is first finished, but 20 years from now it may be hard to get your visitors to realize how much effort went into your creation! Show them what it took to create your work of art.
Another bad habit I have is to concentrate my picture taking on the blooms alone. While these make for great pictures, they lack in their usability for identification purposes. Try to take at least a couple of photos that depict the plant in its entirety so that the viewer also knows what the foliage looks like, as well as the stature of the plant.
I don't claim to be a great photographer, but I've learned a lot through trial and error. These are only a few of the things I've learned...


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