California Fuchsia
Epilobium canum
Blazes with scarlet-orange tubular flowers in late summer and fall, just when hummingbirds need fuel most. Spreads by rhizome to cover hot, dry banks. Like other fireweeds, young shoots and leaves have documented food use, though this species is grown more for hummingbirds than the table.
- Family
- Onagraceae
- Type
- shrub
- Lifespan
- perennial
- Height
- 1–3 ft
- Spacing
- 2–4 ft apart
- Light
- sun
- Soil moisture
- dry
- Soil pH
- neutral, alkaline
- Bloom
- August, September, October
- Bloom colors
- red
- Wildlife value
- pollinators, hummingbirds
- Landscape uses
- border, erosion control, naturalizing
- Native states
- AZ, CA, ID, NM, NV, OR, UT, WY
Related native plants
More Epilobium species
- Rockfringe Willowherb (Epilobium obcordatum)
- Siskiyou Willowherb (Epilobium rigidum)
- Humboldt County Fuchsia (Epilobium septentrionale)