Hummingbirds
are the jewels of Western gardens. With
their brilliant colors and fascinating behavior, they bring hours of enjoyment. That’s why many of us include ‘hummingbird
plants’ in our garden palette. One such plant, which graces fall gardens with
its orange flowers, is the Hummingbird trumpet, Epilobium canum. The scientific name is pronounced epi-LOBE-ee-um CAN-um.
Epilobium canum
is a member of the
Onagraceae (Willow-herb) family that
includes such garden favorites as the common garden fuschia, evening primroses,
Clarkias, Gauras and native Camassonia
species. The genus Epilobium includes the lovely native Fireweeds as well as
California Fuschia. The taxonomy
(classification) of the Willow-herb family is still being sorted out – so we
may need to update this post in the future.
Long-time native plant enthusiasts still sometimes call Epilobium
canum by its older – but more interesting – name: Zauschneria californica.
The name Zauschneria honored
the 18th century German botanist Johann Baptista Josef Zauschner. The name Epilobium refers to the fact that flower and seedpod occur together
and the species name canum refers to
the ‘hairy’ aspect of this species.
Epilobium canum is a plant of the North American West, growing from Oregon and Wyoming to Baja California and Northern Mexico. There are currently four recognized sub-species (note: some taxonomists group ssp. garrettii and latifolium together): Epilobium canum ssp. canum (California Fuschia); E. canum ssp. garrettii (Garrett’s Hummingbird Trumpet); E. canum ssp. latifolium (Mountain Hummmingbird Trumpet); E. canum ssp. angustifolium (Narrowleaf Hummingbird Trumpet).
As
you might expect, sub-species and cultivars vary in their hardiness, as well as
their heat and drought tolerance. If you
live where winter temperatures dip to zero degrees F. (or below), sub-species garrettii
(USDA Zones 3–10) and latifolium (Zones 5-9) and some of their cultivars
offer your best choices. As always, be
sure to check the USDA Zone for a plant before you purchase. If you live in a warm-winter area, you can
grow most of the sub-species and cultivars, but some may require more water.
In the garden, Hummingbird trumpet adds a spot of bright color at a time when the many summer-blooming species are past their prime. This species really begins growing in earnest in late spring/summer. In colder climates, the plant dies back significantly – and is also eaten by hungry critters - in winter. In mild winter areas, gardeners cut the stems back after blooming to achieve the same ends. The plants start sending up new stems in spring – and really achieve their full growth in summer.
Hummingbird trumpet is a spreader, so don’t be surprised if a clump of Epilobium increases in size over the years. The stems of Epilobium canum are slender, part-woody and wand-like to almost vine-like. They usually form a mounded clump, but it may fill in around other plants. The leaves are long and narrow or lance-shaped. The foliage color varies from a medium green, through pale blue-green to silvery. In fact, the natural variation in foliage color is the source of several common horticultural cultivars.
Hummingbird trumpet’s flowers are spectacular. They are 1-2 inches long and up to an inch wide. They range in color from orange to almost scarlet red and are tubular or funnel-shaped. Some cultivars are even a pale orange! The anthers (male flower parts that produce the pollen) as well as the female parts extend well beyond the fused petals. When a hummingbird reaches into the flower tube to sip nectar, pollen sticks to its head. The pollen is then deposited on the stigma of subsequent flowers.
The flower color, shape and location of the sexual organs are all good clues that Hummingbird trumpet is pollinated by hummingbirds. Hummingbirds are attracted like a magnet to these glorious flowers. Locate Epilobium near a seating area and you can observe hummingbirds from a distance of only a few feet! It’s fun to watch hummingbirds chase others from ‘their’ flowers!
Epilobium canum is easy to grow in western gardens. It can take just about any local soil – even
those with pH around 8.0. Depending on
the sub-species/cultivar it does well in full sun or part-shade. In full sun the form of the straight species
will often be a 2-3 ft. mound; in part-shade the stems create a low
ground-cover (see below). As with
common garden fuschias, you can pinch the tips of growing stems to form a
fuller plant.
Epilobium
canum adapts well to
garden conditions. Species from lower
elevations are quite drought tolerant, but look better with infrequent summer
water (Water Zone 2; see https://mothernaturesmontrosegarden.blogspot.com/2020/07/creating-your-colorado-friendly-garden.html).
Sub-species from higher elevations do best with occasional summer water (Water
Zone 3). Plants can take winter flooding, which is
useful for those of us who garden in clay soils. And in our experience, Epilobium is quite
disease- and pest-free.
Yearly
maintenance is minimal. In warm winter
areas, cut the branches back to 1-2 inches after flowering to keep the plant
looking tidy and healthy. In colder areas, leave the branches on over winter,
then cut back in spring. You can use
your cuttings to produce new plants if desired. You can also let the plants naturalize by
seed. The seeds have fluffy wings (see
above) that float on the wind and re-seed throughout the garden. The natural look is lovely – but the choice
is yours.
Epilobium
canum can be used in
many ways in the garden. It makes a nice fall accent plant in mixed water-wise
beds. We like it mixed with other
native shrubs, where it fills in the bare spaces over time. Hummingbird trumpet can be used as a
groundcover – alone or with other native groundcover plants. It will even do
spectacularly in a large container. It’s
a perfect accent along walkways or bordering a seating area. It naturalizes in favorable spots throughout
the garden if you let it go to seed.
There are
several horticultural cultivars (types selected for garden use) that are
readily available at native plant nurseries and sales. In cold-winter areas, try
cultivars of subspecies latifolium and garrettii.
Epilobium
canum ssp. latifolium
‘Northfork
Coral’ – USDA Zones 5-10, with coral colored flowers. 1-2 ft tall, 2-3 ft
wide.
‘Woody's
Peach Surprise’ – USDA Zones 5-9. Low-growing form: 6-8” tall by 18” wide. Has
unique, pale peach flowers.
Epilobium
(Zauchneria) canum [var. arizonica] 'Sky Island Orange' – USDA Zones 5-8.
Grows 2-3 ft tall & wide. Flowers red-orange. Wide drought tolerance (10-30”
water per year).
Epilobium
canum ssp. garrettii
'Orange
Carpet' – Hardy (from Idaho; USDA Zones 5-9). Lower-growing 4 to 12 inches high, 2-4 feet wide. Does best
with afternoon shade in hot gardens
Another
choice for hot summers is Epilobium ‘Everett’s Choice’, from the
California Bay Area, which can take the heat. One of the lowest growing of the
Epilobiums (3 to 6 inches high, 3 foot spread or more). It’s very drought and
deer resistant, and more cold resistant than most California forms (hardy to
-10°F).
Because Hummingbird
trumpet is a popular garden plant, new cultivars are being introduced all the
time. We suggest that you purchase
cultivars in the fall, when you can observe the flowers and foliage colors at
their best.
We hope you’ve
been inspired by this lovely Western native plant. Most gardens have a spot for
one or more of these charming plants. You’ll
love the bright accent in your late summer/fall garden. It’s a real treasure - unless you detest the
color orange!
For a
gardening information sheet see: https://www.slideshare.net/cvadheim/gardening-sheet-epilobium-canum-238401468
For more
pictures of this plant see: https://www.slideshare.net/cvadheim/epilobium-canum-garden-photos
For plant
information sheets on other native plants see:
________
1. https://plants.usda.gov/plantguide/pdf/pg_epca3.pdf
We
welcome your comments (below). You can
also send your questions to: monaturesmontrosegarden@gmail.com
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