Looking for something really exotic for the garden this spring that's sure to bring plenty of comments and compliments from friends and passers-by?   Try Red Hot Poker Plant!  This is likely not a plant you will run across in the bedding plants section of the Garden Center, folks, and your neighbors are all going to be wondering where the heck you got it.  Tell them you grew it from seed, and they will be even more impressed!  I grew the plants pictured here from seed and it was easy, quick, and added permanent spring and summer color to my garden for the foreseeable future!

Sow Poker Plant seeds either in the fall or in very early spring as soon as the ground can be worked.  I always start seeds in containers I re-use from other bedding plant purchases so that I can keep an eye on them, but Poker Plant seeds can be started right in the ground if you would rather forgo the extra step of moving them to the garden.  If you do directly seed into the ground, be sure to thin to about 2 feet apart when the seedlings are big enough to be handled.  Don't skip this step, as this plant makes a clump that grows surprisingly large.  Clumps are a rounded tuft shape with bluish green lance shaped leaves.  Flowers are borne on sturdy stems that seem to appear virtually overnight from the center of the clump.  A little bit of patience is required with this plant, as with most perennials, as you may or may not see blooms the first year.  I had a few blooms my first year, but nothing to write home about.  Watch out the second year, though, as this is a plant that will keep going virtually all summer if you keep old blooms cut off all the way down.  A word of caution design-wise is in order here - this is a plant with strong form and very strong color.  Be careful not to plant it in front of that everblooming pink rose you have out there or you are going to have a major color clash going on.  Sadly, I speak from experience on this. 

Poker plants appreciate full sun and well-drained soil.  They are fairly drought tolerant, but absolutely mulch and water as necessary during the dog days of summer to keep the plant healthy.   This is a tough plant with few problems once established and most cultivars are hardy to Zone 5 (be sure to mulch adequately in fall in the colder climates for a little added protection).  Foliage is evergreen, but may look a bit ragged by the end of a long winter. Simply cut off damaged foliage as needed and the plant will come back healthy, happy, and more vigorous than ever in the spring.  Propagate in spring or fall by carefully dividing the crowns and planting the divisions in their permanent places.  It may take a year or two for the divisions to bloom fully.

Bees and hummingbirds love Poker plants and as such, they make a good addition to habitat type gardens. This is a tall, stately plant that has enough "wow" factor to be a focal point on its own.   Careful placement in the garden will insure that you have a real winner in your garden for years to come!