Heliopsis helianthoides Luna Roja

Heliopsis 'Luna Roja' is a variety of false sunflower that is characterized by a compact habit, abundant and prolonged flowering, sturdy stems, and very dark foliage. Its beautiful red-orange daisy-like flowers with a red centre create an incredibly colourful bouquet for many weeks. This excellent perennial plant, closely related to Helianthus, the famous sunflower, deserves to be planted for its many qualities: it is an undemanding, hardy, and vigorous plant that attracts bees and butterflies. Its radiant simplicity makes it suitable for meadow compositions, both in the ground and in pots, and its flowers are long-lasting in a vase.

Heliopsis helianthoides var. scabra 'Luna Roja' belongs to the Asteraceae family and is a very recent Dutch horticultural selection. Its wild ancestor, the false sunflower, is native to North America, where it is usually found in open woodlands and tall grass prairies, less frequently along roadsides. It is a very hardy and self-sufficient plant.

The 'Luna Roja' cultivar is a woody-based perennial plant that does not spread or become invasive. It forms a well-branched clump with numerous sturdy stems, reaching a height of no more than 45cm (18in) and a width of 40cm (16in). Its growth rate is moderate to fast. Flowering occurs from July to October in moderate climates. The brownish flower heads appear at the tips of branched stems. Each flower, or floret, consists of ligulate orange flowers tinged with red at the base (these are the 'petals') and tiny fertile florets ranging in colour from red to brown, arranged on the central disk. The foliage extends up to the top of the stems and is very dark green, more or less purplish, rough, with lanceolate and dentate leaves that are somewhat triangular. The above-ground, deciduous vegetation dies in winter and regrows in spring.

Trends can be quite closed-minded, as the upright habit, long flowering period, and low requirements of Heliopsis should make them welcome in all gardens... but no! However, all specialists agree that they are excellent perennial plants. 25 years ago, Alan Bloom, a famous perennial plant breeder in England, said: "These are certainly the last plants I would get rid of if I decided to eliminate the yellow colour from the borders of my garden." Combine Heliopsis 'Luna Roja' with other easy perennials such as mulleins, Argentinian vervain, tansies, Heleniums, Agastaches, etc.