Persicaria amplexicaulis ‘Firetail’: Is This Perennial Too Good to be True?

Image: vivaces.netTwo summers ago, I planted Persicaria Firetail with some trepidation; I wasn’t convinced that it would grow in my area. Some sellers promised that it is winter hardy to USDA Zone 4 while others suggested Zone 5. Lucky for me, it survived its first winter in Zone 4, and by the end of the second season, it had grown sufficiently to be propagated.

I was attracted to this plant because of its casualness and its long bloom period. It appears to be the sort of perennial best suited to a cottage garden. It is also ideal for a flowerbed with a meadow theme, as it looks stunning when combined with ornamental grasses.

image: defriesgardens.comThe most impressive characteristic of this plant is that by insinuating itself among other perennials – it must be seen to be believed - it weaves a theme of crimson through my garden to anchor all of the other hot colored flowers that bloom there.

Firetail will spread to 4 feet in diameter. By its second year, most of that spread appears to have taken place above ground. I cannot report with any accuracy if its root base, growing exponentially from its center, will also spread that wide underground. Nor am I able to predict if it will, or will not, choke out neighboring plants. More growing time is required to accumulate that information.

image: flowerfarmandgardens.blogspot.comCrimson is not a color I would embrace in my English style pastel gardens, however, the brown fence that separates me from my neighbor calls for yellows, corals, and red flowers. Consequently, the flowerbed located in front of the fence has become home to yellow helianthus, heliposis, vivid achillea, and a variety of coral, tangerine, and scarlet-colored hemerocallis.  A crimson plant, like Firetail, that can hold its own in this tropically colored setting, is a welcome addition.

The second most impressive characteristic about this plant is the longevity of its flowers; it blooms June to October and sometimes to the first frost. In the future, I will have to decide if its extended bloom period warrants growing such a spreading plant in an urban flowerbed.

Firetail in my garden in September, after all other perennials have finished blooming.The third most impressive characteristic about this sprawling plant is the root ball. While fleshy and dense, it is easily divisible from its extremities.

Persicaria amplexicaulis Firetail, also known as Polygonum amplexicaule Firetail, is a tall, upright, spreading perennial, which forms large, dense, bushy clumps of leathery dark green leaves, typically 3 to 4 feet tall. This tall foliage supports bottle brush-shaped crimson flowering spikes, up to 6 inches long, which bloom all summer.

This plant needs elbow room to achieve its potential. Without ample space, it will weave itself among other perennials, which, frankly, is a rather artistic way to grow this plant.

As it crochets its way throughout my flowerbed, it is about to enter year three of its growth. Therefore, I am unable to report on its long-term development. One of the problems with recently introduced varieties is that there is no established garden lore to guide us. Who can predict how it will behave when it matures?

Sellers recommend this plant for massing in moist areas, but I have grown it in a rather dry location. Perhaps that is why it took two years to make its presence felt.

Unlike its white, spectacular cousin, the strongly territorial Persicaria polymorpha, this cultivar is not too aggressive. However, like its cousin, it needs lots of space to grow. While this plant is a steady spreader, it is not considered to be invasive. Only time can judge that characteristic, because one gardener’s spread might be considered another gardener’s invasion.

Firetail grows in sun and part shade, in normal, sandy, or clay soil providing the earth is moist. It attracts butterflies, and is deer and rabbit resistant. Due to its spreading habit, some might consider experimenting with it as ground cover.

Beautiful Plants: Can There Ever Be Too Many?

Azalea gardens, from cg1ngeorgia.com

When the renowned landscape architect Wolfgang Oehme died last December, one of his pet peeves was reported frequently in various tributes to his lifetime accomplishments. Oehme abhorred Azaleas. Not only did he find them ubiquitous, but he also found their green foliage boring after the shrub stopped blooming.

 I am not comfortable with his assessment.

Azalea closeup courtesy of 123rf.com

The first time I saw azaleas, I was overwhelmed with joy. I thought I had magically stepped into a Technicolor Walt Disney movie. It happened when I first visited Rockland County, New York at the height of the blooming season; I was euphoric. 

Once, azaleas were new to me. I had never seen them growing in my area - that is until recently, after they were bred to be winter-hardy. Some might say that if I had grown up in a temperate climate, where they grow abundantly, perhaps like Mr. Oehme, I too might tire of them.  

But I doubt that would ever happen. Those of us who are moved by colorful flowers will admire them where and when we can, no matter how short the time to enjoy them.

The family, including rhododendrons, is quite versatile. Its  many varieties have proven to be visually effective even when used as foundation plants. Flowering shrubs in this group create a win-win situation for the gardener. They provide lush clouds of vivid color in late spring, followed by a proscenium of green foliage that not only enhances later blooming perennials and also camouflages the homes’ foundations. I will never tire of using them.

Understandably, it is an aspect of human nature that ubiquitous plants will annoy some gardeners and turn a few of them into horticultural elitists. They observe the same plant used so often, and in so many locations, that they cannot  bear to look at it. The question remains: - why do the rest of us continue to plant them? Because they are reliable.

Wild eupatoreum, http://www.spacecoastwildflowers.com/2009_09_01_archive.html

Endless miles of native species of eupatorium, asclepias, and achillea that I observed as a child on summer holidays left me hating these native perennials. Later in life, I would deliberately avoid using them. Then, one day, I noticed new cultivars bred from these families, growing in a neighbor’s garden; I was impressed how attractive they appeared.

That inspired me to reconsider my attitude and I began to incorporate them into my work. When they were combined with other plants to create impressive combinations, they proved to be among the more dependable specimens in my flowerbeds. Now, they are the workhorses that help make my gardens beautiful.

Hemerocallis Stella d'Oro, http://www.willowaymarketing.com/index.cfm/fuseaction/plants.plantDetail/plant_id/103349/index.htm

A similar case can be made for Hemerocallis Stella d’Oro, and Knock Out Roses. They are considered by some to be good-old-reliables; they grow anywhere, pump out endless color, and return season after season with little effort from the gardener.

Knock Out Rose, http://www.perennialfarm.com/whatdowegrow/knockoutroses.html

That they have become ubiquitous should not make us cringe upon seeing them. They are effective wherever they are used. It is fortunate that, living in unpredictable and changing climates, we can count on them to awake and rebloom each season.

In deference to the late Mr. Oehme, I understand his reaction to the seas of azaleas he discovered when he first arrived in America from Europe. Perhaps it is because he took up residence in a temperate climate that he disliked them so. Wherever endless varieties of plants grow in abundance, one has the privilege of selecting and discarding them at will. After all, there are so many from which to choose that eliminating one or several from one’s repertoire is not a serious matter.

We northerners cannot behave so cavalierly in our gardens. We work with a restricted list of plants that withstand our cold climate and short growing season. Consequently, we are appreciative of all beautiful plants. No matter how often they occur in the gardens around us, we never tire of looking at them. We are just grateful.