Calceolaria Sunset Mixed seeds

The selection of Calceolaria 'Sunset Mixed' brings together a beautiful collection of calceolariae with a compact habit and well-branched structure that flower for weeks from spring, in a festival of flamboyant colors. Their small swollen flowers, sometimes called 'slipper flower' or 'pantoufles', are coloured and variegated in different tones including copper, orange, dark red, bright red, yellow, and scarlet. These annual plants create a sensational visual effect in containers, but they also thrive in sunny borders.

Hybrid Calceolaria plants belong to the Scrophulariaceae family and are the result of the cross-breeding of three Chilean species. They are herbaceous annual plants that cannot tolerate drought, heat, irregular watering, or draughts, but they are relatively easy to grow in pots on patios in good, well-drained potting compost. The 'Sunset Mixed' selection from seed suppliers Thompson & Morgan brings together some very beautiful horticultural varieties chosen for their colours, floribundity, and relative resistance to low temperatures (frost-free). The cultivars in this mix have a more branched habit and shorter stems than the usual varieties. They are low-growing plants that form cushions of less than 25 cm (10 in) in all directions. They first develop dark green, slightly furry leaf rosettes. Their flowering lasts for over 5 weeks and takes place from April to July depending on the sowing date. The flower spikes bear flowers in various colours, mostly bicoloured or variegated, ranging from yellow to dark red. The very distinctive shape of the flowers, made up of two lipped lobes, one of which is larger and particularly puffed up, resembles the shape of a small slipper. Furthermore, in Latin, 'calceolus' means 'little shoe'.

The 'Sunset Mixed' calceolariae allow for the creation of remarkably colourful containers, to be placed on window sills, patios, or balconies. Although difficult to associate with other plants, they blend perfectly with one another. Touches of blue or white, brought by Lobeliae, will enhance their flamboyant colours. They can also be planted at the edge of borders, for example with Daylilies and Crocosmiae in a harmonious colour scheme. Grasses (Stipa, Carex comans, Eragrostis), silver baskets (Cerastium), as well as Anaphalis will soften and enhance their flowering without overshadowing it.