Just as interest in old-fashioned yarrows was waning, a wave of new cultivars from Germany was bred in the 1980s. Paprika yarrow (Achillea 'Paprika') has vivid red flowers with yellow eyes blooming in flat clusters atop upright stems. Its blooms are held well above its dense, fern-like foliage. The bloom period is from early June and into October. Easy to grow in a variety of well-drained soils ranging from clay to loam to sand, yarrow is the perfect plant for the suburban border garden. It is naturally deer and rabbit resistant and is tolerant of drought and salt. A butterfly attractant, it is lightly fragrant. Deadheading produces lovely dried flowers and encourages a second bloom.

The wild species from which the hybrids derived is Achillea millefolium, common yarrow. This is a common Eurasian weed of dry, grassy areas. The flowers are white to pale pink. A subspecies is native to the western United States, but yarrows found in meadows in Illinois are weeds.