shrub
Firebush
Hamelia patens
Preview: plant data is awaiting horticulturist review. A professional horticulturist hasn't reviewed our plant table yet. Lists still follow fixed rules for zone, sun, pets, deer and invasive status.
Hardy in zones 9–11, Firebush is a fast-growing semi-evergreen shrub. It grows 4–8 ft tall and 4–6 ft wide, so plant it 4.5 ft apart. Give it full sun to part shade and little water once established. It flowers orange and red in May to November. In a FloraVista list it usually plays the structure role: a shrub that holds the bed's shape at the back all year. It is native to Florida and the Gulf. Deer may browse it when other food is short, and it is toxic to dogs and cats. Our rules leave it out of lists in the Pacific Northwest and California, where summer heat, humidity or mild winters hold it back even inside its zone range.
Facts from our plant table
- Botanical name
- Hamelia patens
- Plant type
- Shrub, semi evergreen
- Hardiness zones
- 9 to 11
- Sun
- Full sun (6+ hours); Part sun (4–6 hours); Part shade (2–4 hours)
- Water
- Low
- Soil
- Tolerates sandy, alkaline soil.
- Mature size
- 4–8 ft tall × 4–6 ft wide
- Spacing
- 4.5 ft apart (centre to centre)
- Growth rate
- Fast
- Bloom
- May–Nov · orange and red
- Roles in a bed
- Structure, Filler
- Styles
- natural, cottage, low water
- Deer resistance
- Medium: browsed when deer are hungry
- Pets
- Toxic to dogs and cats. Not in the ASPCA database and no reliable toxicity data found; marked toxic as a precaution pending review.
- Native to
- Florida/Gulf
- Pot size and price
- 3-gallon pot, typically $20–$35 (easy to find)
- Plant in
- Spring
- First-year watering
- Water weekly through the first summer to root it in, then taper off; established plants need little extra water.
- Pruning
- Cut back by a third in late winter; in zone 9 frost may kill it to the ground and it regrows.
Sources: UF/IFAS Gardening Solutions and EDIS fact sheets; ASPCA toxic and non-toxic plant list; Southeastern extension deer-resistance lists (UGA, Clemson, UF/IFAS); state noxious weed lists / Invasive Plant Atlas of the US; typical 2026 US garden-centre and big-box listings. Not yet reviewed by a horticulturist.
Good companions
The plants our list engine most often puts in the same bed as Firebush, across the sun, zone, pet, deer and style combinations it fits.
- Bamboo muhlyMuhlenbergia dumosaornamental grass · zones 9–11
- Hummingbird sageSalvia spathaceaperennial · zones 8–10
- Island alum rootHeuchera maximaperennial · zones 8–10
- Mexican bush sageSalvia leucanthaperennial · zones 8–11
- Pink muhly grassMuhlenbergia capillarisornamental grass · zones 6–11
- Mexican honeysuckleJusticia spicigeraperennial · zones 9–11
If you can't find it
Substitutes our engine offers for Firebush: same role in the bed, passing the same rules.
How this page was made
This page was generated from this plant's record in FloraVista's plant table by fixed rules. The companions and substitutes come from the lists our rules engine composes. No named expert has reviewed this page.
Data status: the plant table is awaiting review by a horticulturist. Check each plant with a local nursery or extension office before you buy.
Sources
- Missouri Botanical Garden Plant Finder, state extension services and the USDA PLANTS database (zones, size, sun, water, bloom, native range)
- ASPCA toxic and non-toxic plant lists (dog and cat toxicity)
- Rutgers NJAES and regional extension deer-resistance ratings
- State noxious-weed and invasive-plant lists and the Invasive Plant Atlas of the US
- Typical US garden-centre listings (pot size and price band)
Generated . How FloraVista chooses plants