| Description | Bat-Face Cuphea (Cuphea) has small flowers of this plant that look like a bat's face. It is a tender, broadleaf evergreen sub-shrub grown as an annual in cold climates. |
|---|---|
| Pronunciation | (KYOO-fee-uh)(LAY-vee-a) |
| Plant Type | Annuals, Perennial Tender, Site author's observations |
| Sunlight | full |
| Moisture | average to dry |
| Soil & Site | well drained |
| Growing Media | well drained |
| Temperature | frost tender, heat tolerent |
| Flowers | Formed from a tubular purple calyx with two red petals. One of the common names, 'bat-faced,' comes from how the end of the flower resembles a tiny bat face. The flowers attract hummingbirds. |
| Dimensions | A small bush or trailing plant that reaches up to 12 inches in height, with an equal or greater spread, and tends to grow larger in warmer hardiness zones. |
| Maintenance | Prune to maintain form and size if needed. |
| Propagation | cuttings, |
| Native Site | Mexico |
| Author's Notes | Since the flowers are small and interesting, place a potted plant on a table where it can be observed up close. This will make it easy to admire the 'bat-faced' flowers, which will, in turn, elicit oohs and aahs. |
| Notes & Reference | #51-Armitage's Manual of Annuals, Biennials, and Half-Hardy Perennials (Alan Arimitage), |
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