Astrantia major Ruby Flame Hyrume - Masterwort

Astrantia major 'Ruby Flame' is a recent variety of masterwort that stands out for its early flowering, long duration, and abundance. Forming a dense and compact clump, this perennial is covered from June to September with a large number of elegant and delicate flowers in the most vibrant purple-red.  Astrantia major is a perennial often seen to cottage gardens, it is an easy-to-grow plant that grows in any good garden soil that remains fresh. Perfect at the front of semi-shaded borders, it can also be grown in deep containers. It is also widely used and appreciated as a cut flower for its exceptional longevity and durability in dry or fresh bouquets

Astrantia major, native to central and eastern Europe, belongs to the Apiaceae family (formerly known as Umbellifers), it is a distant relative of the carrot. In the wild, it is found in the mountainous areas, growing on clay-rich soils with a tendency towards limestone. Numerous cultivars and hybrids have been created from this wild species, including the recent variety 'Ruby Flame', which is extremely floriferous.

Astrantia major Ruby Flame is a perennial plant with an underground rootstock, whose above-ground vegetation develops in spring and disappears in winter. During the growing season, the plant produces straight, sturdy, and highly branched stems forming a bushy clump about 45 cm (18in) tall and 35 cm (14in) wide, and the flowering reaches 60 cm (24in). The foliage is composed of palmate leaves, with 5 deep lobes, lanceolate, dentate, green, and strongly veined. The multiple flowers appear from June to September, in cloud-like and long-lasting umbels, reaching 3 to 4 cm (1 to 2in) in diameter. They are composed of dozens of tiny flowers surrounded by a collar of large bracts beautifully coloured in deep red.

Robust and hardy, Astrantia major Ruby Flame grows easily in moist, humus-rich (even limestone) and well-drained soil, in sunny, semi-shaded, or even shady positions in warm climates. Its easy cultivation makes it perfect for contemporary natural gardens. It also requires little maintenance.  At the edge of woodland or in shaded flower beds, this masterwort blends beautifully with the pastel colours of foxgloves, perennial geraniums, annual poppies, columbines, hostas, lungworts... It combines perfectly with perennials (asters, heucheras, peonies, delphiniums, bellflowers, foxgloves, ophiopogons) and roses in natural and/or romantic settings. This generous and undemanding plant is particularly suited to the 'cottage' style, planted in drifts, as its flowers, which are very complementary to ornamental grasses, bring texture to it. The elegant and refined flowers are also used as cut flowers for their exceptional flowering duration, to create lovely fresh or dried floral arrangements.

The range of masterworts offers a wide range of colors allowing for rich colour combinations.