Description
It belongs to the asphodel family. In the wild it grows in South Africa and Madagascar. A very attractive plant with unusual, colourful flowers. It is a perennial with a short rhizome and fleshy roots. It has only basal leaves – grey-green, channelled, up to 80–90 cm long, stiff, sword-shaped and pointing upwards. Flower spikes up to 90 cm tall, in yellow, red and orange, appear in June and delight the eye until October. The individual flowers in the spike are slightly drooping and very densely arranged in cylindrical terminal racemes, with the lower flowers yellow and the upper ones orange-red. They are planted in borders, in groups or singly, and look especially striking by water. The flower spikes are good for cutting.
Requirements
Red hot pokers grow well in sandy or medium soil with added composted manure. They like sunny places, moderately moist but not wet. Excess moisture in winter is harmful.
Care
In our climate the plants are not sufficiently frost-hardy. To protect them from frost, tie the leaves together loosely and cover the plant with a layer of dry leaves or dry peat up to 30 cm thick, leaving the leaf tips uncovered. The covering is mainly to protect the fleshy roots and the centre of the leaf rosette. It should not be too airtight, so that air can reach the plant. Before severe frosts it is good to cover the plants additionally with pine branches.