Other Names:  Red-hot Poker, Torchlily, Flame Flower, Tritoma

Description:

Amazing orange blooms that fade to yellow, on tall stalks, rise from grassy, evergreen foliage from late summer to mid-fall; a larger variety, creating an impressive border or container planting; makes a great cutflower and attracts hummingbirds

Ornamental Features

Common Marsh Poker features bold spikes of orange tubular flowers with yellow overtones at the ends of the stems from late summer to mid fall, which emerge from distinctive green flower buds. The flowers are excellent for cutting. Its grassy leaves remain grayish green in color throughout the year.

Landscape Attributes

Common Marsh Poker is an open herbaceous evergreen perennial with tall flower stalks held atop a low mound of foliage. Its relatively fine texture sets it apart from other garden plants with less refined foliage.

This is a relatively low maintenance plant, and should be cut back in late fall in preparation for winter. It is a good choice for attracting hummingbirds to your yard, but is not particularly attractive to deer who tend to leave it alone in favor of tastier treats. It has no significant negative characteristics.

Common Marsh Poker is recommended for the following landscape applications;

• Mass Planting
• General Garden Use
• Container Planting

Planting & Growing

Common Marsh Poker will grow to be about 4 feet tall at maturity extending to 6 feet tall with the flowers, with a spread of 3 feet. When grown in masses or used as a bedding plant, individual plants should be spaced approximately 32 inches apart. It grows at a medium rate, and under ideal conditions can be expected to live for approximately 10 years. As an evegreen perennial, this plant will typically keep its form and foliage year-round.

This plant does best in full sun to partial shade. It prefers dry to average moisture levels with very well-drained soil, and will often die in standing water. It is considered to be drought-tolerant, and thus makes an ideal choice for a low-water garden or xeriscape application. It is not particular as to soil pH, but grows best in sandy soils. It is somewhat tolerant of urban pollution. This species is not originally from North America. It can be propagated by division.

Common Marsh Poker is a fine choice for the garden, but it is also a good selection for planting in outdoor pots and containers. With its upright habit of growth, it is best suited for use as a 'thriller' in the 'spiller-thriller-filler' container combination; plant it near the center of the pot, surrounded by smaller plants and those that spill over the edges. It is even sizeable enough that it can be grown alone in a suitable container. Note that when growing plants in outdoor containers and baskets, they may require more frequent waterings than they would in the yard or garden.