Coreopsis auriculata ‘Nana’

Coreopsis auriculata, or “Mouse-eared Coreopsis”, is a sun-loving favorite for the native perennial garden in the Southeast. The flowers are single, about 2 inches across, with a center of golden disk flowers and 8 golden, characteristically toothed petals or ray flowers. They are held at 12 – 24 inches high, well above a deep green mat of foliage which remains green in the winter. ‘Nana’ is a short cultivar with flowers topping out at 9 or 10 inches. Basal and stem leaves are simple, hairy, ovate, about 3″ long, and some of them have small, lateral lobes at their base reminding someone of mouse ears. Butterflies are drawn to the flowers April to June, and a few weeks later, when the disk flowers have developed into seeds, birds begin to visit as well. The plant spreads by way of stolons. ‘Nana’ seeds are said to be fewer in number than the species, and the new plants would revert to the species in height, so ‘Nana’ should be propagated by clump division in spring or from stolon sprouts. These are a favorite in the South because they thrive in our heat and humidity. The USDA plant distribution map linked below is for the species.