Overview

Introduce a touch of exotic beauty to your garden with the breathtaking Kangaroo Paw live plant, specifically the stunning ‘Ruby Velvet’ variety. Known botanically as Anigozanthos ‘Ruby Velvet’, this unique perennial is celebrated for its distinctive flower spikes that resemble a kangaroo’s paw, hence its charming common name. This particular cultivar boasts rich, velvety red flowers that emerge on tall stems, creating a dramatic visual impact against its sword-like, evergreen foliage. Ideal for adding a splash of vibrant color and architectural interest, the Ruby Velvet Kangaroo Paw is a fantastic choice for gardeners looking for something truly special and low-maintenance. It is a robust and visually appealing plant that thrives in various settings, from garden beds to containers.

Originating from Western Australia, Ruby Velvet Anigozanthos is well-adapted to drier conditions, making it an excellent choice for xeriscaping or gardens in warmer climates. Its upright growth habit and long-lasting blooms make it a favorite for cut flower arrangements, bringing the beauty of your garden indoors. This live plant will arrive ready for planting, allowing you to quickly establish this magnificent specimen in your landscape. Prepare to enjoy the vibrant display and unique form that this exceptional plant offers throughout the blooming seasons.

Key Benefits

The ‘Ruby Velvet’ Kangaroo Paw offers numerous advantages that make it a standout choice for any garden. Its unique aesthetic and resilience contribute significantly to its appeal, promising a rewarding gardening experience. Embrace the beauty and practicality of this exceptional plant.

• Stunning Visual Appeal: Features vibrant, velvety red flowers that are truly eye-catching and add a unique texture to the garden. The distinctive ‘kangaroo paw’ shape of the blooms is a conversation starter.
• Long Blooming Season: Enjoy a prolonged display of color with blooms appearing consistently throughout spring and summer, ensuring your garden stays lively and attractive for months.
• Drought Tolerance: Once established, this plant is remarkably drought-tolerant, making it an excellent choice for water-wise gardening and regions with limited rainfall. It’s a truly resilient drought tolerant plant.
• Attracts Pollinators: The vibrant flowers are a magnet for hummingbirds and other beneficial pollinators, enhancing the biodiversity and ecological health of your garden space.
• Low Maintenance: Requires minimal care once established, making it suitable for busy gardeners or those new to gardening. It’s an easy-care Kangaroo Paw live plant.
• Versatile Use: Perfect for garden beds, borders, rock gardens, or container planting. Its upright form also makes it an excellent focal point or accent plant.
• Evergreen Foliage: Maintains its attractive sword-like green foliage year-round, providing continuous interest even when not in bloom.

Plant Care & Growing Tips

Caring for your Kangaroo Paw live plant, ‘Ruby Velvet’ variety, is relatively straightforward, especially given its hardy nature. To ensure optimal growth and prolific blooming, providing the right environmental conditions is key. This plant thrives in full sun, meaning it needs at least 6-8 hours of direct sunlight per day to produce its best flowers. Proper sunlight exposure also helps to prevent diseases and encourages robust growth. While it tolerates some partial shade, too little sun can result in leggy growth and fewer blooms.

When it comes to watering, the Anigozanthos ‘Ruby Velvet’ prefers well-draining soil and is quite tolerant of dry conditions once established. Water regularly during its first growing season to help it establish a strong root system. After establishment, reduce watering frequency, allowing the soil to dry out completely between waterings. Overwatering is a common mistake and can lead to root rot, so ensure your soil or potting mix drains efficiently. A sandy or loamy soil enriched with organic matter is ideal. For fertilization, a slow-release granular fertilizer formulated for flowering plants can be applied in early spring, or a liquid feed every 4-6 weeks during the growing season. Deadhead spent flower stalks to encourage new blooms and maintain a tidy appearance. Protect from hard freezes if you are in a colder USDA zone, as this plant is typically hardy in USDA zones 9-11. The red flowering plant will thank you with continuous beauty.

Size & Details

The Kangaroo Paw live plant ‘Ruby Velvet’ typically grows to a mature height of approximately 1-2 feet, with flower stalks often reaching up to 3 feet, creating a dramatic vertical element in the garden. Its width can spread to about 1.5-2 feet, forming attractive clumps of evergreen foliage. This plant is shipped in a 1 gallon pot, ensuring it has a well-developed root system ready for transplanting into your garden or a larger container. The growth rate is moderate, and you can expect it to establish well within its first season, with blooms typically appearing in the spring and summer of the following year, or even sooner with proper care.

The sword-like leaves provide a textural contrast to the unique, velvety red flowers. While primarily grown for its ornamental value, its resilience as an Australian native plant makes it a fantastic addition to various landscaping styles, from modern to naturalistic. Its compact size makes it suitable for smaller gardens, patios, or even as a striking border plant. This particular plant is a robust specimen, ready to bring vibrant color and unique form to your outdoor living space.

Frequently Asked Questions

• Q: How big does this plant get? A: The ‘Ruby Velvet’ Kangaroo Paw live plant typically grows to about 1-2 feet tall with flower stalks reaching up to 3 feet. It spreads to about 1.5-2 feet wide, forming a nice clump.
• Q: What size pot does it come in? A: This plant is shipped in a 1 gallon pot, providing it with ample space for initial growth and a healthy root system.
• Q: Is this an indoor or outdoor plant? A: While it can be grown in containers and brought indoors in colder climates, the ‘Ruby Velvet’ Kangaroo Paw is primarily an outdoor plant, thriving in full sun exposures.
• Q: How much sunlight does it need? A: This red flowering plant requires full sun, meaning at least 6-8 hours of direct sunlight daily, to ensure the best blooming performance and overall health.
• Q: Is this plant easy to care for? A: Yes, once established, the ‘Ruby Velvet’ Kangaroo Paw is considered a low-maintenance plant, especially known for its drought tolerance and general hardiness.
• Q: What condition will it arrive in? A: Your plant will arrive healthy and well-rooted in its 1 gallon pot, carefully packaged to minimize stress during transit, ready for planting.
• Q: When is the best time to plant? A: The best time to plant is in spring or early summer after the last frost, allowing it ample time to establish before cooler weather.
• Q: Will it survive winter in my zone? A: The ‘Ruby Velvet’ Kangaroo Paw is hardy in USDA zones 9-11. In colder zones, it can be grown as an annual or overwintered indoors.
• Q: What makes it a drought tolerant plant? A: Its origins as an Australian native plant mean it has evolved to cope with dry conditions, developing efficient water storage and usage mechanisms.
• Q: How often should I water my Kangaroo Paw? A: Water regularly during its establishment period. Once established, allow the soil to dry out completely between waterings, as it prefers drier conditions over constantly moist soil.