Dicentra - Bleeding Hearts
Dicentra | Another great shade perennial, deer resistant, moist soil, minimal fertilizer required. Give morning sun for best bloom.
| Dicentra | Perennial |
|---|---|
| Bloom Time | Spring, except if noted otherwise |
| Light | Light Shade |
| Water | Moist Soil, Humus Rich |
| Diseases | Leaf Spot, Mildew, Wilt |
| Pests | Aphids, Slugs |
| Propagation | Division, Seed, Root Cuttings |
| Color | White, Pink, Red, Yellow |
| Zones | 3 - 8 |
| Features | Deer Resistant, Cut Flowers |
Dicentra Spectabilis A favorite in Grandmother's garden half a century ago, it is equally popular today. Grows 2' tall. The Old Fashioned Bleeding Heart thrives in partial shade, but will grow in full sun.
It has very attractive foliage and graceful heart-shaped pink flowers in April and May. It also is able to become larger, more beautiful, each passing year.
Flowers are dainty and hang off the stems. They generally are heart shaped, hence the common name Bleeding Heart.
The flowers come in pink, red, yellow and white. Hybrids are common, and differ in foliage and flower qualities
This is another great shade plant and performs well alongside a hosta garden. If you can give them a bit of sunshine in the morning and light shade for the remainder of the day, this is what will make them the happiest.
Some types bloom only in spring and others bloom spring, summer, and fall, provided temperatures aren't too high.
Dicentra need rich, light soil with adequate porosity to promote sufficient water drainage. Don't let Bleeding Hearts stand in water. Bleeding Hearts do best in neutral or slightly alkalinized soil.
Propagate by sowing seeds when ripe or in spring, in containers in a cold frame. Cold frames are protective structures, located outside for propagating and growing plants.
Species can also be propagated by division in spring, which is how I propagate my bleeding hearts. They seem to do the best when you divide them every 3 to 4 years as this brings robust life to the parent plant.
Certain species of the Bleeding Heart self sow very freely, so a good layer of mulch around the plants bill not only keep the moisture in and the weeds down, it will control rampant spread of this plant.
Dicentra Collection: Dicentra Spectabilis Unique Beauty for your garden! This collection includes 1 each of: Old Fashion Bleeding Heart, White Bleeding Heart. The White Bleeding Heart is extremely rare -- We they are imported from Europe.
Use Bleeding Hearts together with Hosta and Lungwort. I also use them freely with my fern garden, as the fern-like leaves blend in very nicely.
You can easily plant large pools of Bleeding hearts and vary the colors in different areas of the pool.
For longest and best bloom, give them morning sunshine and afternoon shade. The best place is the east side of a structure, home or garage.
They do like moist humus soil too, but not wet feet. A spot along a creek bank or pond edge is a wonderful place for this great perennial to have a home.
The plant is deer resistant, but be careful where small children have access to this plant as all parts of the Bleeding Heart are poisonous.
Hosta:
Large hostas, such as Siebold hosta are excellent at filling in the void left when old-fashioned bleeding heart dies back to the ground in midsummer
Heart-leaf brunnera:
Heart-leaf brunnera makes a lovely combination with bleeding heart. Its bold foliage provides a contrast to the finely divided leaves of bleeding heart, while its airy blue flowers float above.
Lungwort:
Lungwort makes an excellent foreground plant for bleeding heart. It blooms at the same time, but carries interest through summer with its silver-splotched foliage.
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Fluorescent red dicentra'
By far the best "fern-leaf" type Bleeding Heart we have seen. Zestful Bleeding Heart starts blooming in late spring and continues until October, intense fluorescent red heart-shaped flowers held above the bright green foliage.
Absolutely hardy, withstands dry weather and not bothered by insects. Zestful Bleeding Heart is a nearly perfect garden plant. Grows well in partial or full shade -- coming back year after year with more lovely blooms each year. Select plants
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Fringed bleeding heart (Dicentra eximia) has deeply cut, blue-green foliage and pink blooms rising to 1 foot tall. It reblooms through summer and fall as long as temperatures are not excessively hot. It is native to the eastern U.S. Zones 4-8
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Gold Heart bleeding heart (Dicentra spectabilis 'Gold Heart') offers a dramatic color combination. It pairs chartreuse foliage with pink blooms to stunning effect. Zones 3-9
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King of Hearts bleeding heart (Dicentra 'King of Hearts') produces a mound of blue-green foliage 6 to 8 inches tall and masses of pink blooms in spring and again in late summer and fall. Zones 4-8
Dicentra Spectabilis alba Almost impossible to find in the U.S. The White Bleeding Heart is a most appealing perennial, similar to the lovely old-fashioned bleeding heart, except for the color. Pure white, heart shaped pendants hang on gracefully drooping stems.
Leaves are soft green and have many divisions. White Bleeding Heart flowers from May to late June. This neat, bushy plant grows about 2 feet tall. Does well in partial shade. Will live for years. Number one field grown plants.
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Langtrees bleeding heart (Dicentra formosa 'Langtrees') is a white form with ferny blue-green leaves. Like fringed bleeding heart, it blooms nearly continuously if weather conditions remain cool. Zones 4-8
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Old-fashioned bleeding heart (Dicentra spectabilis) is a 2- to 3-foot-tall springtime bloomer with long arching branches of dangling heart-shaped blooms. It usually goes dormant in summer, so pair it with a plant that will fill in its space later in the year. Zones 3-9
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White old-fashioned bleeding heart (Dicentra spectabilis 'Alba') has the same qualities as regular old-fashioned bleeding heart except its flowers are pure white. Zones 3-9
Dicentra 'eximia' - Fernleaf Bleeding Heart' This plant is an improved variety over the old-fashioned bleeding heart.
Beautiful as the old-fashioned variety is, the Fern-Leafed Bleeding Heart blooms for only a short time in the spring, whereas this fringed, or Fern-Leaf Variety blooms from mid-spring to late fall, with its beautiful rose-pink blooms by the hundreds on 10-18" stems.
Grows best in light shade, but will tolerate full sun if the soil is moist. Plant about 12-18 inches apart. Get all-summer bloom in one area that might otherwise require a number of different plants to get such results in partial shade.
Number one field grown plants. Attracts hummingbirds. Deer resistant. Can be used as cut flower.
Spacing: Space 12" - 18" apart when planting, depending on the size of the cultivar. The area will fill-in quickly.
Fertilizer: Use Osmocote Fertilizer and spread over surface of the ground once every 6 months. Use about 1/2 to 1 small handful, depending on size of plants.
Watering: Do not let them dry out. Keep the humus soil moist, but well drained.
From the Nursery: Bleeding Hearts will be available more often than not as small container plants.
At this stage they can be planted at any time from spring to late summer. If you get your hands on some bare root crowns or stems, plant them with the roots facing down in early spring.
