Ornamental cotton – We saw numerous varieties of ornamental cotton when we were on a recent trip to the Brandywine Valley in Delaware and Pennsylvania. It made many of us add this to our list of plants to try next year.
But, since we live in a state that commercially produces cotton, we may have to rethink those plans. I talked with my friend at the State Plant Board, and they do limit cotton plantings for home use because of worry about reintroducing the cotton boll weevil—a detrimental insect. They do issue permits to grow cotton for educational purposes, but I think we should find other annuals to add interest to our gardens; there are plenty to choose from.
Buddha belly or Jatropha podagrica
is an unusual looking plant with a swollen stem (called a caudex)
which is why it gets the name buddha belly. Arising from that swollen stem are clusters of leaves and tight clusters of bright orange flowers.
It thrives outdoors during the summer in sun to partial shade, but would need to overwinter indoors.
Euphorbia cotinifolia
commonly called tropical smokebush or copper spurge, is a showy annual for us in Arkansas. The first time I saw it used in the garden was in Tulsa several years ago. From a distance, I did think it was a smoke tree (Cotinus), but when you got closer, you could see the leaves were smaller.
It can be overwintered indoors or in a greenhouse, and if it is protected, each year the plant will get larger, and actually form a woody trunk. The Latin species name cotinifolia –means the leaves look like a smoketree. It has dark red, showy leaves all summer and tiny white flowers. Best in full sun. And the deer leave it alone, since the white sap is toxic. It is related to poinsettias.