Garden Tip 96:

The hot dry weather has taken its toll on garden perennials. Some have weathered the drought better than others, and it is interesting to take note of those that have come through in good condition. One in particular, in my garden, is Persicaria ‘Firetail.’

It stands today as it did in June, strong, clean, and still in flower, seemingly oblivious to the lack of rain over the past eight weeks. This plant is a clumping perennial that grows to three feet tall and can spread over time to six feet wide. Red spike flowers six inches long appear in early summer and continue right through the fall. Persicaria ‘Firetail’ is easy, tough, and deer and rabbit resistant.