Family: Lythraceae

Mostly from Mexico and tropical America, these frost-tender subshrubs and perennials are grown for their profuse, showy flowers and they make excellent pot plants for intermediate greenhouses and conservatories. Sometimes they are grown as annuals and bedded out for summer.

Species

C. hyssopifolia, which grows to 60 cm (24 in), has crowded, narrow leaves and axillary flowers, with a green calyx and six purple, pink or white petals.

C. ignea, cigar flower, growing to 1 m (3 ft), is the most commonly cultivated species. It has a shrubby growth habit, thickening with regular pruning. The leaves are lance-shaped and the numerous, solitary flowers have a slender, bright red calyx, with a white mouth and dark ring at the end. They bloom almost all year round, but are most profuse in summer and autumn.

Cultivation

Under glass, grow in pots of soil-based potting compost. Plants need bright light but shade from direct sun and a moderately humid atmosphere. Outdoors, plant in full sun or partial shade. Propagate from seed in early spring or from softwood cuttings in late spring. Both need bottom heat.

Climate

Zone 10.