Cuphea ignea

Last updated

Cuphea ignea
Cuphea ignea1.jpg
Status TNC G5.svg
Secure  (NatureServe) [1]
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Rosids
Order: Myrtales
Family: Lythraceae
Genus: Cuphea
Species:
C. ignea
Binomial name
Cuphea ignea

Cuphea ignea, the cigar plant, cigar flower, [2] firecracker plant, or Mexican cigar, is a species of flowering plant in the genus Cuphea of the family Lythraceae. It is a tropical, densely branched evergreen subshrub. [3] This species, native to Mexico and the West Indies, produces small, tubular, bright red to orange flowers. [4] Each flower is tipped with a thin white rim and two small purple-black petals. The flowers, which are attractive to hummingbirds and butterflies, [5] resemble lit cigars, hence the name ignea, which is Latin for "fiery". [6] The genus name Cuphea comes from the Greek word kyphos which means curved or humped; this is thought to refer to the shape of the seeds. [4] The leaves are small, elliptical and of a bright green colour. It grows to about 60 cm (24 in). [7]

Contents

Cultivation

In temperate climates Cuphea ignea requires a warm, sheltered spot, as it does not tolerate frost. Alternately it may be grown under glass or indoors as a houseplant. In the UK this plant has gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit [8] (confirmed 2017). [9]

In the US, Cuphea ignea is winter hardy to USDA zones 10–12. [4] It is somewhat drought tolerant, but prefers well-watered, well-drained soils. [5]

Related Research Articles

<i>Nicotiana</i> Genus of flowering plants in the nightshade family Solanaceae

Nicotiana is a genus of herbaceous plants and shrubs in the family Solanaceae, that is indigenous to the Americas, Australia, Southwestern Africa and the South Pacific. Various Nicotiana species, commonly referred to as tobacco plants, are cultivated as ornamental garden plants. N. tabacum is grown worldwide for the cultivation of tobacco leaves used for manufacturing and producing tobacco products, including cigars, cigarillos, cigarettes, chewing tobacco, dipping tobacco, snuff, and snus.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lythraceae</span> Family of flowering plants

Lythraceae is a family of flowering plants, including 32 genera, with about 620 species of herbs, shrubs, and trees. The larger genera include Cuphea, Lagerstroemia (56), Nesaea (50), Rotala (45), and Lythrum (35). It also includes the members of the former families of the pomegranate and of the water caltrop. Lythraceae has a worldwide distribution, with most species in the tropics, but ranging into temperate climate regions as well.

<i>Pyracantha</i> Genus of shrubs

Pyracantha is a genus of large, thorny evergreen shrubs in the family Rosaceae, with common names firethorn or pyracantha. They are native to an area extending from Southwest Europe east to Southeast Asia. They resemble and are related to Cotoneaster, but have serrated leaf margins and numerous thorns.

<i>Anthurium</i> Genus of plants

Anthurium is a genus of about 1,000 species of flowering plants, the largest genus of the arum family, Araceae. General common names include anthurium, tailflower, flamingo flower, and laceleaf.

<i>Lythrum</i> Genus of flowering plants

Lythrum is a genus of 38 species of flowering plants native to the temperate world. Commonly known as loosestrife, they are among 32 genera of the family Lythraceae.

<i>Cuphea</i> Genus of flowering plants in the family Lythraceae

Cuphea is a genus containing about 260 species of annual and perennial flowering plants native to warm temperate to tropical regions of the Americas. The species range from low-growing herbaceous plants to semi-woody shrubs up to 2 m tall. Commonly they are known as cupheas, or, in the case of some species, as cigar plants. The generic name is derived from the Greek word κυφος (kyphos), meaning "bent," "curved," or "humped."

<i>Scilla luciliae</i> Species of plant in the family Asparagaceae

Scilla luciliae is a species of flowering plant in the family Asparagaceae. It is referred to by the common names Bossier's glory-of-the-snow or Lucile's glory-of-the-snow, and is a bulbous perennial from western Turkey that flowers in early spring. After flowering, it goes into dormancy until the next spring. The specific epithet is in honour of Lucile, the wife of the Swiss botanist Pierre Edmond Boissier (1810-1885). It belongs to a group of Scilla species that were formerly put in a separate genus, Chionodoxa, and may now be treated as Scilla sect. Chionodoxa.

<i>Ribes sanguineum</i> Species of flowering plant in the gooseberry family Grossulariaceae

Ribes sanguineum, the flowering currant, redflower currant, red-flowering currant, or red currant is a North American species of flowering plant in the family Grossulariaceae, native to the western United States and Canada.

<i>Physostegia virginiana</i> Species of flowering plant

Physostegia virginiana, the obedient plant, obedience or false dragonhead, is a species of flowering plant in the mint family, Lamiaceae. It is native to North America, where it is distributed from eastern Canada to northern Mexico. Physostegia are known commonly as obedient plants because a flower pushed to one side will often stay in that position. The name “false dragonhead” refers to the dragonheads of the related Dracocephalum, a genus to which the plant once belonged.

<i>Cuphea hyssopifolia</i> Species of flowering plant in the family Lythraceae

Cuphea hyssopifolia, the false heather, Mexican heather, Hawaiian heather or elfin herb, is a small evergreen shrub native to Mexico, Guatemala, and Honduras.

<i>Cuphea viscosissima</i> Species of flowering plant

Cuphea viscosissima, also known as blue waxweed, clammy cuphea or (ambiguously) as "tarweed", is an herbaceous plant in the loosestrife family. It native to the eastern United States, where it is most often found in open, rocky calcareous areas. It is the most common and widespread Cuphea in the U.S.

<i>Symphyotrichum lateriflorum</i> Species of flowering plant in the family Asteraceae native to central and eastern North America

Symphyotrichum lateriflorum is a species of flowering plant in the aster family (Asteraceae). Commonly known as calico aster, starved aster, and white woodland aster, it is native to eastern and central North America. It is a perennial and herbaceous plant that may reach heights up to 120 centimeters and widths up to 30 centimeters.

<i>Russelia equisetiformis</i> Species of flowering plant

Russelia equisetiformis, the fountainbush, firecracker plant, coral plant, coral fountain, coralblow or fountain plant, is a species of flowering plant in the family Plantaginaceae.

<i>Crossandra infundibuliformis</i> Species of flowering plant

Crossandra infundibuliformis, the firecracker flower, is a species of flowering plant in the family Acanthaceae, native to southern India and Sri Lanka. It is most often found in south Indian region Andhra Pradesh, tamilnadu,and kerala.

<i>Salvia</i> Largest genus of plants in the mint family

Salvia is the largest genus of plants in the sage family Lamiaceae, with nearly 1000 species of shrubs, herbaceous perennials, and annuals. Within the Lamiaceae, Salvia is part of the tribe Mentheae within the subfamily Nepetoideae. One of several genera commonly referred to as sage, it includes two widely used herbs, Salvia officinalis and Salvia rosmarinus.

<i>Anthurium andraeanum</i> Species of plant

Anthurium andraeanum is a flowering plant species in the family Araceae that is native to Colombia and Ecuador. It is a winner of the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit.

<i>Tradescantia sillamontana</i> Species of flowering plant

Tradescantia sillamontana is a perennial evergreen herbaceous plant of the genus Tradescantia. This species is one of the most succulent and xerophytic, but at the same time one of the most attractive species of Tradescantia. It is endemic to dry areas of the State of Nuevo León in northeastern Mexico and can also be found in Spain and Italy.

<i>Cuphea lanceolata</i> Species of flowering plant

Cuphea lanceolata, also known as the cigar flower, is an annual herbaceous flowering plant in the genus Cuphea of the family Lythraceae.

<i>Cuphea oreophila</i> Species of flowering plant

Cuphea oreophila also known as the sacred flower of the Andes is a Lythraceae perennial plant that grows into a small bush. Native to Guatemala and the Mexican state of Chiapas, it was first described by TS Brandegee and Rimo Carlo Felice Bacigalupi in 1933.

<i>Anchusa capensis</i> Species of plant in the genus Anchusa

Anchusa capensis, is a species of flowering plant in the family Boraginaceae, native to Namibia, South Africa and Lesotho. The genus Anchusa is from the Greek word anchousa, which makes reference to its use as a dye base for cosmetic paint obtained from the roots of another plant in the genus Anchusa tinctoria. The species capensis translates to ‘from the Cape’ referring to South Africa

References

  1. "NatureServe Explorer" . Retrieved 2021-04-14.
  2. "ITIS Standard Report Page: Cuphea ignea". Itis.gov. Retrieved 2010-07-30.
  3. "Cuphea ignea". Floridata. Retrieved 2010-07-30.
  4. 1 2 3 "Cuphea ignea". Missouri Botanical Garden Plant Finder. Archived from the original on 2014-02-24. Retrieved February 19, 2021.
  5. 1 2 "Cuphea ignea (Firecracker Plant, Mexican Cigar Plant) | North Carolina Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox". plants.ces.ncsu.edu. Retrieved 2021-02-20.
  6. "Cuphea ignea". Mobot.org. Retrieved 2010-07-30.
  7. "Cuphea ignea {Lythraceae} Cigar Flower, Cigarette Plant". Titanarum.uconn.edu. Archived from the original on 2010-06-30. Retrieved 2010-07-30.
  8. "Cuphea ignea". Royal Horticultural Society. Retrieved 2020-04-17.
  9. "AGM Plants - Ornamental" (PDF). Royal Horticultural Society. July 2017. p. 26. Retrieved 24 January 2018.