Native to the southeastern United States, standing cypress wildflower (Ipomopsis rubra) is a tall, impressive plant that produces masses of flowers in late summer and early autumn.
Standing Cypress or Ipomopsis rubra is very dependable in the sandy Cross Timbers soil where I live. It’s a biennial. It produces a ferny rosette the first year, followed by a flowerspike the second year.
Generally grown from seed, although you can transplant the rosettes fairly easy, as long as you dig down and get about six inches of the tap root. It likes the sun and is generally pretty drought-tolerant.
The flower spikes can be anywhere from two feet tall to more than six feet in wet springs. When the spike has bloomed out, you can cut it off, and new spikes will be formed.
Standing cypress is a biennial that produces a rosette of leaves the first year, then reaches for the sky with towering, blooming spikes the second season. However, the plant is often grown as a perennial because it self-seeds readily. You can also harvest seeds from dried seed heads. Plant standing cypress seeds in autumn, when soil temperatures are between 65 and 70 degrees F. (18-21 C.). Cover the seeds with a very thin layer of fine soil or sand, as the seeds require sunlight in order to germinate. Watch for the seeds to sprout in two to four weeks.