Japanese name: ハナチョウジ（花丁字） Scientific name:Russelia equisetiformis
[Overview]
An evergreen shrub 50–120 cm tall.
The stems are slender with 4 ridges, grow long, arch and hang down, and branch freely.
The leaves are simple and opposite, but are reduced to small, almost scale-like leaves, elliptic to lanceolate.
It flowers all year round as long as the temperature allows.
Cymes in the leaf axils bear 1–3 orange-red flowers.
The corolla is a slender tube 2.5 cm long, divided into 5 lobes in a somewhat two-lipped form.
The fruit is an almost spherical capsule.
[Cultivation]
Propagate by division or cuttings.
To overwinter, a temperature of 10°C or higher is safe, but it tolerates down to about -5°C, so in areas warmer than southern Kanto, it can overwinter outdoors even if the above-ground parts die back in winter.
It prefers sunny, well-drained soil.
In poor light it becomes leggy and flowers poorly.
It tolerates dryness.
Rainfall is sufficient for watering.
From spring to autumn, apply a slow-release compound fertilizer (three components, Tokyo) placed on the soil.
There are no particular pests or diseases.
