Annuals & Biennials

Calceolaria
slipper flower

Height 8-60 in (20-150 cm)
Planting 12-15 in (30-38 cm)
Flowers early summer to midfall
Well-drained acid soil
Sheltered, sunny or partially shaded site
Half-hardy annual

The kidney-shaped blooms of the slipper flower were favorites in Victorian times for formal beds and greenhouse displays. Two Chilean species, Calceolaria crenatiflora and C. integrifolia, and their cultivars can be grown outdoors. They do best in sunny spots in temperate summers that are free from both frost and excessive heat. Their bright flowers in various yellows, either plain or blotched, look cheerful among the pale fresh green wrinkled leaves. The flowers are borne in succession from early summer until midfall.

Popular species and cultivars
The cultivars here have been bred for summer bedding
'Little Sweeties' is a seed mixture producing plants up to 15 in (38 cm) tall with an abundance of small puch-shaped flowers in pale yellow, orange, pink, and scarlet, often with contrasting speckles. The plants will grow in the shade.
'Midas' bears golden yellow blooms, renowned for their long flowering season. The neat, bushy and branching plants reach 10-15 in (25-38 cm) high.
'Sunshine' is a free-flowering hybrid, bearing bright yellow flowers throughout the summer. It reaches 8-10 in (20-25 cm) high and has a bushy, compact habit.

Annuals
and
Biennials