SCARLET PAINTBRUSH Castilleja miniata (Sorry no USA addresses for this item)

Scarlet paintbrush is a hardy perennial with stunning colorful color that lasts for several months throughout the growing season! Plants form a nice clump, which requires very little attention, is drought tolerant, and disease resistant.

Castilleja, commonly known as paintbrush, Indian paintbrush, or prairie-fire, is a genus of about 200 species of annual and perennial herbaceous plants native to the west of the Americas from Alaska south to the Andes, northern Asia, and one species as far west as the Kola Peninsula in northwestern Russia.

Castilleja are food source for pollinators including butterflies and hummingbirds.

It is hemiparasitic, obtaining water and nutrients from other plants by tapping their roots. Grasses and sedges makes good host plants. Plants should be planted at the same time, or if the host plant is already established the seeds can be scattered at the base of the plant if the lower part of the plant is slightly bruised (knife works well).

Type: Hardy perennial

Hardiness zones: 4-8

Height: 50 cm or 20"

Seeds per pack: 10

USA restriction: Sorry these seeds cannot be shipped to USA addresses. Canadian addresses are okay.

Germination: As with many perennial seeds, these seeds can benefit from a period of moist cold to help them break dormancy. This is done by giving them a cold 'winter' period (artificial or natural), and then a warming to simulate 'spring', and time to grow! Here's how this can be done:

Obtain a planting container that has holes in the bottom for excess water to drain. Place the seeds just under the surface of your growing medium, and water. Place your container in a cold area (but not freezing, perhaps a refrigerator) for 4-6 weeks. Once the cold period is completed, place the container at room temperature for them to germinate. Be sure to keep the soil moist during this entire germination period. Seedlings will sprout a few weeks after the warming period.