Achimenes

Achimenes, also known as hot water plants, were once a great favourite with Victorian gardeners and they deserve to be better known now. Distantly related to gloxinias and African violets, they are showy, short, bushy pot plants that are ablaze with exotic busy-lizzie-like flower in a huge range of colours from early summer through to autumn.

Although the Victorians mainly grew them as greenhouse and conservatory plants, they are brilliant for a wide windowsill indoors, and in a decent summer they also make stunning hanging basket plants for a sheltered patio or balcony. What’s more they are incredibly easy to grow.

But you won’t find plants on sale in the shops; achimenes are only available in early spring as dormant tubercles – which is the ‘proper’ name for the tiny odd-shaped tubers that the plants grow from. Garden centres often stock a few pre-packed in their bulb racks, but for the biggest selection of named varieties you need to order by post from mail order bulb catalogues (such as de Jager www.dejager.co.uk 01622 840229, and Jacques Amand  www.livingcolourbulbs.com 01962 840038). Buy at least three as it takes several plants growing close together to make a good potful; ten would be better still.

Start them off now or over the next few weeks. Put three or five tubercles in a five-inch half-pot, or ten in a full-sized five- or six-inch pot, using a mixture of 50:50 John Innes No.3 and multipurpose compost. Plant the tubercles half an inch deep and an inch apart. Stand the pot on a warm windowsill at 65– 70F, and water sparingly at first, increasing the amount slightly once shoots start to appear.

Take care not to let them dry out entirely at any time during the growing season, or they’ll take the hint and go dormant again – even if they haven’t started flowering. Despite what their name suggests, don’t water them with hot water – tepid is best. The plants originate from the West Indies, Mexico and warm humid parts of south America so they don’t like sudden cold shocks, and who can blame them.

By the time the first flowers appear, start adding a little well diluted liquid tomato feed to the water every week or so, and if your variety has tall floppy stems push in a few short twiggy sticks for support. (Old varieties often grow to a foot or 15in tall; modern varieties tend to stay shorter and more compact). They’ll flower themselves silly for months.

When flowering slows down in the autumn gradually reduce watering over several weeks and stop feeding, as the plants prepare to spend winter in deep dormancy. When the tops have died down naturally, trim the dead stems off close to the tops of the pot and stand them in a spare room at a temperature of 50F or above, and forget all about them till the following spring – it’s vital the tubercles remain bone-dry.

At roughly this time next year, tip the pots out onto a sheet of newspaper and pick out the tubercles to repot. (Don’t just start watering the original potful – they need fresh compost; without it they won’t perform half so well). But you’ll have a pleasant surprise; instead of your original three or ten tubercles, you’ll have anything from twice to five times as many. Hot water plants are great little self-propagators, so you’ll have plenty of spares to start new potfuls or give away to friends.