I collected the seeds from a stand growing beside a highway (those in the photo here) in May 2003. I was afraid the mowers might mow them too soon. The ones I grow are pure red with no speckling in the throat. Those in the photo you're referencing were from May 2005 in my yard. It's a limestone outcropping which I'd made into an iris bed. The seeds were sown in among the iris clumps. Some bloomed in 2004, but being biennial plants there wasn't a big show until 2005. I actively cultivated them for a couple of seasons and subsequently have let them do everything on their own. Every year there are some that bloom and plants have managed to show up in areas where there is little to no traffic. Basically they are growing in poor, thin alkaline soil, but some have found their way into beds with improved soil. They have not spread beyond the parameters of the yard. I've had the cattle get in the yard, but they haven't bothered them. I suspect their tall upright growth is inhibiting them being established otherwise. When I see them growing wild anywhere it's always in a 'no traffic' area. Bar ditches and along the railroad right of way are better bets on seeing them. The ones I grow are pure red with no speckling in the throat. I haven't been collecting seeds the last several years, but I probably need to do that again. They are really showy plants that hummingbirds love. Here's a photo of the original wild stand where I collected seeds:
