Cuphea (Cigar Plant)
Cuphea ignea
Cuphea (Cigar Plant) blooms from May through October.
Mature size, hardiness zones, sun and the trait tags were checked against named botanical sources for this plant. The bloom months and water need on this page were not.
Growing Cuphea (Cigar Plant)
Plant it in full sun. It prefers moderate water. It is hardy in USDA zones 9–11. Expect it to reach about 1.3 ft tall and 1.3 ft wide at maturity, in roughly 1 year.
When to plant Cuphea (Cigar Plant)
Wait until all danger of frost has passed, then plant out Cuphea (Cigar Plant) into warm soil; in most zones that means late spring. Planted then, it flowers from May to October.
Month-by-month timing for your zone is on the planting calendar: for the middle of its range, start with zone 9 in February.
5 more colors in the Cuphea family
Same family, similar care - pick the one you are growing.
Good to know about Cuphea (Cigar Plant)
Curated from university extensions, botanic gardens and other primary sources, with the source named on every note.
Worth knowing
Each slender orange-red bloom has a white-rimmed mouth and a tiny dark tip, so it looks like a lit cigar with ash and a glowing ember. Hence 'cigar flower.' per NC State
Size depends on climate
As a container or bedding annual it stays compact, about 0.45 to 0.75 m; planted in frost-free Florida ground it grows larger and much wider. per NC State and University of Florida
A hummingbird magnet
The tubular, nectar-rich red-orange flowers are exactly what hummingbirds prefer; Wisconsin ranks cuphea among the best hummingbird plants for the Midwest. It also feeds bees and butterflies. per Wisconsin and NC State
No deadheading needed
It is self-cleaning: it blooms nonstop to frost without deadheading. Pinch stem tips only if plants get leggy, to keep them bushy, not to keep flowers coming. per NC State
Grown as an annual
A tender tropical perennial killed by frost, so most gardeners grow it as a warm-season annual. Start seed indoors 10 to 12 weeks before your last spring frost. per NC State and Missouri Botanical
Built for heat
NC State lists it as resistant to drought, heat, and humidity, so it keeps flowering through midsummer when many cool-season annuals fade. It is not salt tolerant. per NC State
What pairs well with Cuphea (Cigar Plant)
Good companions share its growing conditions and add something it lacks: an earlier or later bloom, a lower carpet in front, or structure through winter.
Sneezeweed
Shares full sun and moderate water; both are strong pollinator plants; its seed heads stand through winter, for structure and the birds; taller at 3.3 ft, for the layer behind it.
Globe Thistle
Shares full sun and low to moderate water; both are strong pollinator plants; its seed heads stand through winter, for structure and the birds; taller at 3.3 ft, for the layer behind it.
Perennial Sunflower
Shares full sun and moderate water; both are strong pollinator plants; its seed heads stand through winter, for structure and the birds; taller at 4.9 ft, for the layer behind it.
Hyacinth
Shares full sun and moderate water; blooms in early spring, before this one opens; both offer pollinator forage, in different months; lower at 10 in, for the front of the border.
Rosemary
Shares full sun and low to moderate water; opens in early spring and overlaps into this one's season; both are strong pollinator plants; evergreen, so the bed keeps its shape through winter.
Serviceberry
Takes full sun to part sun and moderate water; blooms in mid spring, before this one opens; both are strong pollinator plants, and they feed in different months; its white flowers settle the pink.
Grape Hyacinth
Shares full sun and low to moderate water; blooms in early spring, before this one opens; both offer pollinator forage, in different months; lower at 8 in, for the front of the border.
Flowering Crabapple
Shares full sun and moderate water; opens in mid spring and overlaps into this one's season; both are strong pollinator plants; echoes the pink.
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