Viewing comments posted by needrain

From the Gesneriaceae family, 'Inferno' is a hybrid between Achimenes and Smithiantha. Its growth is much the same as Achimenes. It grows from a scaly rhizome that resembles tiny pine cones and crumbles easily when handled. The foliage is dark green tinged maroon and quite stiff and upright. The plant usually grows to about twelve inches. Not significantly susceptible to insect damage, but needs consistent moisture during the growing season. It tolerates high heat, but prefers temps between 70-90F. The blooms have the form of an Achimenes bloom. They are a very showy fire-engine red with a yellow center, but they are late, coming toward the end of summer into early fall. Like its parents, it goes completely dormant at the end of the bloom season and only starts growing from the rhizomes in late spring. It can be stored in the container overwinter, but needs protection from freezing temperatures while in storage.

When my sister, who lives in the Houston area, talked about getting some of this from me, I didn't recommend it. It comes up all over the place from seeds and can show up in the unlikeliest places. In my part of dry Texas with sufficiently cold winters to kill it, it's easy enough to keep it in check, but I think the warmer, wetter conditions in Houston might make this a nuisance plant. For me, though, this is a great filler plant to provide green contrast among the other plants in hanging baskets. I'd recommend it for anyone who has cold winters to kill off the plants. It's easy enough to remove the extras that survive in neighboring pots. It might be something of a nuisance in a greenhouse situation. You might be fighting seedlings everywhere. I wish I had a greenhouse to test that :).