Plant of the Week – Wine Cups

The southwest desert has some of the most colorful and beautiful plants and the Wine Cups are no exception. They go by many names; Buffalo Rose, Purple Poppy Mallow, and their scientific name Callirhoe involucrata. They are perfect to add to your commercial property here in the Phoenix Metro area.

Callirhoe involucrata is a species of flowering plant in the mallow family known by the common name purple poppy-mallow. It is native to the United States, and northern Mexico. Callirhoe is a genus of flowering plants in the mallow family, Malvaceae. Its nine species are commonly known as wine cups or poppy mallows and all are native to the prairies and grasslands of North America. Of the nine, some are annuals while others are perennial plants.

The genus is named for the Oceanid Callirrhoe in Greek mythology. Poppy mallow leaves are alternate and palmately lobed. The flowers are cup-shaped and brightly colored.

The purple poppy mallow (Callirhoe involucrata) is grown as a garden plant. It is a low-growing perennial with a large taproot and hairy stems. The flowers range from cerise to reddish violet with white centers. It is especially used in dry climates.

The wine cups have lots of solitary, wine-colored, cup-shaped flowers bloom all summer on this 2 to 3 feet wide perennial. Native to the sandy, gravelly soils of the southwest prairies, woodlands and roadsides but thrives everywhere we've tried it. Cold hardy. Sow in fall or soak seed 6 to 8 hours in water & sow in spring.

Wine cup tubers can be found in dry, sandy fields. The leaves are best cooked where their okra-like tendencies can be used to thicken stews. The tubers taste like sweet potatoes and can be eaten raw or cooked. The tubers are biggest in the winter, but are very hard to find then without the wine cup flower showing their location.

These Wine Cup flowering plants can add beauty to your commercial landscaping and are surprisingly low maintenance. 

It doesn’t matter to us whether you want desert landscaping, lush lawns or some type of landscaping in between, we can help.  We serve businesses like yours all over the Phoenix Metro Area. To find out how give us a call at 623-848-8277.

Presented by:
Greens Keeper Landscape Maintenance, LLC
623-848-8277
http://www.commerciallandscapecare.com
greenskeeperllc@cox.net