Geum Scarlet Tempest

The hybrid avens or Geum 'Scarlet Tempest' is a highly remarkable Scottish creation that was showcased at the Chelsea Flower Show in 2016. It stands out from all other avens with its generous and particularly late summer second flowering, as well as its unprecedented, almost red, colour of its semi-double corollas. Its orange-mandarin flowers, tinged with scarlet, sway on sturdy and branching stems that do not require staking. Its abundant and vivid green foliage perfectly enhances its vibrant flowers. This hardy and trouble-free perennial avens will faithfully bloom every year. Simple and sturdy, avens are making a comeback in our gardens and terraces, in the sun, in damp, well-drained, and fertile soil.

Geums are herbaceous perennials from the Rosaceae family, very hardy, native to temperate or colder regions of the northern and southern hemispheres. Crossed with each other, they have given rise to numerous hybrids, including 'Scarlet Tempest', created in 2014 by Elizabeth MacGregor by crossing the varieties 'Beech House Apricot' and 'Red Dragon'. This compact and bushy variety measures 50 cm (20in) in height and about 40 cm (16in) in width. It forms a clump and develops upright, semi-evergreen, irregular, and finely velvety basal leaves, measuring 10 cm (4in) long and wide. This avens displays, on thin and branching stems, cymes bearing several semi-double cup-shaped flowers. The first ones to bloom, in May-June, measure 6.5 cm (3in) in diameter. Once the blooming is well underway, the abundantly produced corollas are slightly smaller, measuring 5.5 cm (2in) in diameter. The blooming slows down from mid-July to mid-August, and then resumes from September to October. The flowers are composed of translucent orange-red petals, animated with visible veins, and enhanced by a large yellow prominent cluster of stamens. Like many long-flowering perennials, this avens does not have a very long lifespan, so it is advisable to divide it every three years to keep it in the garden for a long time. This sterile variety does not produce seeds.

Hardy and highly floriferous, Geums are an easy plant, very accommodating, to be rediscovered for its simplicity and hardiness. It appreciates sunny or semi-shaded situations and grows in ordinary moist soil that is well-drained. To fully enjoy its magnificent blooming, this beautiful variety, 'Scarlet Tempest', will ideally be placed at the edge of borders, flower beds, mixed borders, rockeries, or even in pots. Its floral spikes will create magnificent bouquets. Requiring some space to develop well, it is important to leave enough clear space around its base. It will blend beautifully with other perennials with spring, summer, or even autumn flowers. In partial shade, it will associate well with Columbines, Lady's Mantles, Spurges, Grasses, and Asters. By mixing several varieties of avens together, sublime colour combinations can be created! In the sun.  It will perfectly match numerous plants such as Rudbeckias, Scabious, and perennial Geraniums.