Lion's Tail - A Perennial Summer Burst of Orange

I once had lion's tail in my garden. I first planted it in 2013, hoping that since it was a perennial shrub, it would give me many years of orange flowers.  It did not bloom until August. (See photo at right.) It was supposed to grow big -- maybe as big four to six feet wide and tall. I left lots of room for it, because it's supposed to be very colorful. I was hoping that since it did not really need dry season irrigation it would become a large splash of orange filling a good portion of my side flower bed toward the street. It never happened. Now it appears my lion's tail, instead of becoming a perennial summer burst of orange, has disappeared.

By September 1, the plant had grown to what you see below. I still had high hopes for it.

Lion's Tail in Bloom September 1, 2013,© B. Radisavljevic

By the end of September, it was as you see it below. It was beginning to spread.

Lion's Tail in Bloom September 28, 2013,© B. Radisavljevic

One day I walked into Home Depot, and this is what I saw in their garden department.

Lion's Tail in Bloom at home Depot, © B. Radisavljevic

I was hoping my lion's tail plant would be at least this size someday, but now I can't find it at all. It's a perennial that is frost sensitive. A frost may have killed it. Because of all my surgeries last year during the lion's tail late summer blooming season, I wasn't out taking photos of my garden. I don't remember seeing it last year.

It did bloom in summer of 2014 (see above photo), but it certainly never grew to become like its big brothers at Home Depot. I see no trace of it in my flower bed now where I think it was. Perhaps it's hiding and will  pop up again in late summer. Or, perhaps, it was a plant that failed in my garden.

Originally I was going to write about Lamb's Ears, which is thriving in my garden, but I've already written about lamb's Ears here.

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This is my twelfth post for the 2016 AtoZchallenge, a Blogging Challenge for the month of April, 2016. My theme is plants, since this is a gardening blog. Here are links to the other posts if you missed them.

A is for Apple Blossoms
B is for Bottlebrush
C is for Carnations
D is for Daisy

E is for Elderberry
F is for Flowers
G is for Gazania
Hollyhocks are Edible
Irises Are Garden Survivors
Jupiter's Beard: A Mystery Finally Solved

Kale for Lunch