Name:    Cuphea Vermillionaire  or ‘David Verity’ aka cigar plant

Type of Plant:  Annuals in the Northeast, that are hummingbird magnets.

Why I Love This Plant:  This annual adds a dash of orange that makes mixed containers (no matter the flower colors) come alive, and attracts hummingbirds to your garden.

Vermillionaire, from Proven Winners, grows 18 to 20 inches tall in containers, and a bit taller when planted in the ground. ‘David Verity’ grows 20 to 30 inches tall.  Both play well with others and flower all summer and into the fall without deadheading.

A Word to the Wise:   These plants shed their old flowers all summer – when they do that on my deck, I wash the old flowers off with a stream of water when I’m using the hose in the area. But if you’re the type of person who can’t stand any plant debris on your deck or patio, by all means place these where the dried flowers will fall onto the lawn or into a flower bed.

Vermillionaire is a good plant to use in window boxes or hanging pots if you want to attract the hummingbirds. ‘David Verity’ is good in larger containers and makes a good central upright plant…aka “thriller.”

Cuphea Vermillionaire and David Verity have small, tubular orange flowers.

I use Vermillionaire in containers on all sides of my house. This plant works well with many other flowering or foliage annuals. Here it’s growing with the King Tut Papyrus in my troughs, combined with Salivia Black and Blue, a New Guinea impatiens and a sweet potato vine.

David Verity cuphea is a larger variety – tall, spicky flowers. This is how it looks in September.

Both of these Cupheas are hummingbird magnets!