Bidens Stoplight

The Bidens 'Stoplight' is a hybrid variety of Bidens, a new generation, characterised by a very compact and well-groomed appearance, and endless flowering of intense vivacity. This vigorous plant produces small heads resembling miniature cherry pink dahlias displaying very vivid and shiny petals. This not very hardy perennial plant is grown as an annual, in sunny, well-drained, not too dry soil. A spectacular variety in flower beds, rockeries, or flower pots.

Bidens are semi-hardy plants in very mild climates. They belong to the Asteraceae family and are closely related to Cosmos. The genus includes nearly 200 species, annuals, perennials, undershrubs, and shrubs generally grown as annuals in our climates. The result of over 10 years' research, the 'Stoplight' variety is part of a new line of hybrid plants selected for their endless flowering and very compact habit. While the Bidens 'Stoplight' is quite short-lived, it grows very fast. The plant forms a dense, low, and rounded clump, consisting of branched and leafy stems, 20 to 30 cm (8 in to 1 ft) tall and wide. Its long flowering begins in May-June and only ends with the first frosts of autumn. The plant offers flowers arranged in heads, reaching 3 to 4 cm (1.6 in) in diameter, carried by thin axillary peduncles, and composed of 7 bicolored petals arranged around a golden yellow center. This flowering is remarkably nectar-rich. The foliage, coarser than that of yellow varieties, evergreen in mild climates, consists of small leaves divided into 3 toothed leaflets, a very vivid deep green.

Bidens grow very fast and are very floriferous. Not demanding in water, they are particularly suitable for growing in pots, hanging baskets, rockeries, or summer flower beds. They happily coexist with other annuals such as blue Lobelia, bacopa, and diascia, allowing for multiple colour combinations. For example, Bidens Spotlight pairs perfectly with red or white balcony geraniums, surfinias, supertunias, or petunias in white or blue tones, or with salvias offering blue flowers.

Please note: our young plants in mini-pots are professional products intended for experienced gardeners: upon receipt, transfer and store them under cover (veranda, greenhouse, cold frame...) at a temperature above 14C° (>57.2 F) for a few weeks before planting outdoors once the risk of frosts has definitively passed.