Amaranthus hybridus subsp. cruentus Hot Biscuits

The Amaranthus cruentus, or Amarante Hot Biscuits, is a large tender plant most often cultivated as an annual in our climates. Spectacular, like all amaranths, this one displays large upright and slightly trailing panicles in a magnificent, slightly muted tawny colour. With rapid growth, it forms a beautiful display of leaves and flowers in long, uniquely textured spikes in just one season. This plant is magnificent in borders and bouquets, or in a pot where it can be overwintered frost-free. It can e grown by anyone: while it appreciates the sun, it thrives in any well-drained soil.

This bushy plant belongs to the Amaranthaceae family. It is native to western Asia (India, China, America). The 'Hot Biscuits' cultivar surprises with its animal-like, tawny colour. The plant forms vigorous, upright clumps that reach 1m (3ft) in height and 60cm (24in) in diameter. The large leaves, reaching 15cm (6in) in length, are elongated heart-shaped, tapering at their tips, and deeply veined. Frost-free, they persist through winter. Their colour is a purple with grey highlights, becoming more intense when the plant is exposed to the sun. They are alternate and arranged in a circle around the thick, sturdy stems. The remarkable flowering of this variety occurs from July to September-October.

Amaranths are wonderful colourful and structural plants that have their place in borders. Their exotic appearance also suits large pots on the patio. They are actually not very hardy perennials that can be overwintered frost-free. The 'Hot Biscuits' variety is magnificent alongside the silver foliage of wormwoods, the blue flowers of Centaurea or love-in-a-mist, the blonde spikes of grasses like squirrel tail barley.  Its colour also pairs well with the metallic blue of some Eryngiums or blue oat grass (Helictotrichon sempervirens), as well as with certain Dahlias with equally astonishing colours.