Scarlet Monkey Flower (Mimulus cardinalis)

Scarlet Monkey Flower | Mimulus cardinalis

Vibrant scarlet blooms for pond margins, bog gardens, and wildlife friendly planting

Scarlet Monkey Flower, scientifically known as Mimulus cardinalis, is a striking marginal pond plant loved for its vivid scarlet red flowers, compact growth habit, and exceptional wildlife value. Perfect for pond margins, bog gardens, damp borders, and shallow water planting, this colourful perennial produces masses of tubular flowers throughout summer, bringing bold colour and movement to the water’s edge.

Flowering from June through to August, Scarlet Monkey Flower creates an eye catching display of rich scarlet blooms held above soft green foliage. The tubular flowers are highly attractive to bees, butterflies, and pollinating insects, making this plant an excellent choice for wildlife friendly pond planting schemes. Its bright flowers contrast beautifully against surrounding green foliage and work particularly well alongside softer flowering marginal plants and floating waterlilies.

Mimulus cardinalis thrives in consistently moist soils and shallow pond margins where the roots remain damp throughout the growing season. It performs especially well on shallow pond shelves, bog gardens, and wet border areas receiving full sun or partial shade. The compact clump forming habit makes it suitable for both small garden ponds and larger naturalistic water features, where it can provide long lasting seasonal colour without becoming invasive.

One of the biggest attractions of Scarlet Monkey Flower is the intensity of its flowering display. When happy, it flowers continuously across the warmer months, helping keep pond edges colourful throughout summer. Its soft downy green leaves also provide texture and shelter for insects and amphibians around the pond edge, helping improve biodiversity within the garden.

Scarlet Monkey Flower combines beautifully with plants such as Water Forget Me Not, Bog Pimpernel, Creeping Jenny, and smaller waterlilies to create vibrant and natural pondside displays. Its upright flower spikes also add valuable vertical structure amongst lower growing marginal plants.

Easy to grow and maintain, Mimulus cardinalis is an excellent choice for beginners and experienced pond keepers alike. It benefits from regular deadheading to prolong flowering and performs best when planted in nutrient rich aquatic compost within aquatic baskets. Scarlet Monkey Flower is frost tender in many parts of the UK. It is often grown as a seasonal plant or protected before hard frost by moving the basket to a bright, frost-free position. In very mild or sheltered sites it may survive and regrow, but this should not be relied upon.

Whether you are creating a colourful wildlife pond, a natural bog garden, or simply adding seasonal interest around your pond margins, Scarlet Monkey Flower delivers outstanding colour, pollinator value, and reliable garden performance year after year.

🇬🇧 UK-grown aquatic plant: Grown at a dedicated aquatic plant nursery in the South of England and carefully prepared for delivery across the UK.

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Key Benefits

• Stunning scarlet red tubular flowers
• Excellent pollinator friendly pond plant
• Perfect for pond margins and bog gardens
• Long flowering season throughout summer
• Compact and manageable growth habit
• Adds bright colour to wildlife ponds
• Suitable for small and medium ponds

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Reasons to Buy

• Creates vibrant summer pond displays
• Attracts bees and beneficial insects
• Easy to grow and low maintenance
• Excellent for shallow pond shelves
• Adds structure and texture to pond edges
• Ideal companion plant for natural pond planting

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Care Instructions

• Plant Scarlet Monkey Flower in moist soil or shallow water up to 10 cm deep.
• Position in full sun or partial shade for the best flowering performance.
• Keep the soil consistently moist throughout the growing season.
• Deadhead spent flowers regularly to encourage continued blooming throughout summer.
• Cut back old foliage after flowering and protect the plant from hard frost, or move the basket to a bright, frost-free position for winter.
• Monitor young growth for slugs, snails, and occasional aphids during spring and early summer.

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Flowering Period

June to August

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Size and Growing Conditions

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Dispatching Your Pond Plants

Your Scarlet Monkey Flower will be carefully packed to protect the foliage and roots during transit.

Orders received by 11am Monday to Wednesday are normally dispatched on the following working day using a next working day courier service. During busy periods, dispatch may occasionally take an extra day.

To avoid plants being held in depots over a weekend, we do not usually dispatch on Fridays. Highlands and Islands orders using a two day service are not normally dispatched on Thursdays.

Available basket sizes:

• Pack of 3 × 9cm Pots
• 1 Litre Basket – usually 11 × 11 × 11cm square; some varieties may be supplied in a 14cm diameter × 10cm round basket
• Pack of 3 × 1 Litre Baskets – each usually 11 × 11 × 11cm square

Planting depth is measured from the top of the aquatic basket to the water surface.

Plants supplied in 9cm pots require potting into suitable aquatic baskets before being placed in the pond.

Finofil baskets are manufactured in the UK from 100% recycled plastic and are fully recyclable. Their fine dual-mesh construction helps retain aquatic soil while allowing water and nutrients to reach the roots. Basket shape may vary slightly depending on the plant and supplier availability.

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Similar pond plants

For another pond-edge planting option, compare Common Monkey Flower (Mimulus guttatus) and Sea Rush (Juncus maritimus). Explore the Mimulus pond plant group to compare the whole collection.

Explore more marginal pond plants or browse our complete pond plants range. Need baskets, aquatic soil or planting essentials? Browse our pond plant baskets and aquatic planting supplies.