Firecracker Bush. Hamelia patens.	Firecracker Bush. Hamelia patens.

Firecracker Bush. Hamelia patens, Madder Family ( Rubiaceae ) Firecracker Bush: Also Called; Firebush, Firecracker Shrub, Scarlet Bush, Mexican Firebush, Hummingbird Bush. We wish to thank Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia for some of the information on this page. We share images and information with Wikipedia. Firebush is a showy, fast-growing, semi-woody evergreen shrub that can get up to 15 feet tall under ideal conditions, but usually stays much smaller. Firebush is a valuable addition to butterfly and hummingbird gardens. Sun Exposure: Full sun to part shade. Quick Notes: Height: Normally up to 3 - 6 feet tall. With a 3 - 5 feet spread. Flowers: Terminal clusters (cymes) of bright reddish-orange or scarlet tubular flowers, each about 3/4 inch long. Blooming Time: Late spring through summer, Especially May - June. They reflower from August to frost, in response to the summer rains. Leaves: Elliptic to oval, about 6 inches long, and gray-pubescent underneath. Found: The USDA claims Hamelia patens is native to the USA (FL), USA+ (PR, VI). Also native to Mexico in Nuevo Leon, San Luis Potosi, Sinaloa, Tamaulipas, Campeche, Chiapas, Colima, Guerrero, Hidalgo, Mexico, Oaxaca, Puebla, Queretaro, Quintana Roo, Tabasco, Veracruz, & Yucatan. It is also native to South America in the Caribbean: Antigua and Barbuda - Barbuda; Bahamas; Cuba; Dominica; Dominican Republic; Guadeloupe; Haiti; Jamaica; Martinique; Puerto Rico; St. Vincent and Grenadines. Also native to Mesoamerica in Belize; Costa Rica; El Salvador; Guatemala; Honduras; Nicaragua; Panama Also native to nouthern South America: Venezuela, & Brazil in Acre, Amazonas, Bahia, Federal District, Minas Gerais, Santa Catarina, Sao Paulo; western South America in Bolivia; Colombia; Ecuador; Peru. southern South America in Argentina - Chaco, Jujuy, Misiones, Salta; & Paraguay. Elevation: Native from 0 - 1,564 feet. Hardiness: USDA Zone 8a: to -12.2 �C (10 �F) USDA Zone 8b: to -9.4 �C (15 �F) USDA Zone 9a: to -6.6 �C (20 �F) USDA Zone 9b: to -3.8 �C (25 �F) USDA Zone 10a: to -1.1 �C (30 �F) USDA Zone 10b: to 1.7 �C (35 �F) USDA Zone 11: above 4.5 �C (40 �F) Soil pH requirements: 5.6 to 6.0 (acidic) 6.1 to 6.5 (mildly acidic) 6.6 to 7.5 (neutral) 7.6 to 7.8 (mildly alkaline) 7.9 to 8.5 (alkaline) Sun Exposure: Full Sun Partial Shade Habitat: Alkaline, dry, well-drained/light soils. An ideal landscape plant in Arizona. Miscellaneous: Flowering Photos Taken September, 2006. Glendale, Arizona.