Heuchera: Coral Bells
Heuchera brings bold colors and texture to every garden!
Plant care & info
Family: Saxifragaceae
Genus: Heuchera (HEW-ker-ah)
Common Name: Coral Bells, Alum Root
About 55 species from North America and Mexico.
Heuchera are hardy in the Northwest (zones 4-9), mostly evergreen, and usually like afternoon shade with well-drained soil.
Heuchera bloom early spring to late summer in shades from red to pink to white and make great cut flowers. Once established, they can be drought-tolerant but they enjoy regular water. Some of the purple and green leaved cultivars will handle full sun. The top four ways to kill a Heuchera are burying the crown, improper watering, planting in very heavy soil, and growing in too low light.
Root weevils can be problematic by feeding on the roots. This can be treated with nematodes at the correct soil temperatures. Mealy-bugs can also be a pest.
Heuchera are easy to care for and low maintenance. Dead-heading flowers (removing the spent blossoms) prolongs the bloom time.
If the plants get a dry period in the summer, it might be necessary to cut off some of the outer leaves if they start to look bad. During the winter, the plant may shrink to a smaller rosette and the dead outer leaves should be removed. If your heuchera forms a taller crown, it is time to divide it.
Evergreen, deer resistant, attracts hummingbirds and butterflies.
Heuchera need to be divided every three to four years and are easily propagated from young rootstock. Just dig it up, take the young, vigorous roots and discard the old woody rootstock. The best time to do this is in the spring.
They look good in mass plantings or as border edges, and make fantastic container plants. Bright, nearly–evergreen foliage and ease of care make them invaluable as a shade plant. There are a myriad of cultivars to choose from that will grow in almost any garden situation. Most varieties will grow in full sun in the Pacific Northwest, except those with white (frosted) or yellow–toned leaves which can bleach and burn in the sun.
Conversely, Heucheras will become leggy, pale in color, and less floriferous in full shade. Varieties which perform best in dense shade include the lime cultivars such as ‘Lime Ruffles’ and ‘Lime Marmalade’, the shimmering ‘Spellbound’, glowing red ‘Fire Chief’, classic green and burgundy ‘Green Spice’, and the green and white ‘Snow Angel’.
Heucheras are usually grown for their strikingly colorful, rounded or fringed leaves, with more attention being paid to the flowers in recent breeding efforts. Flower stalks rise from about 12” to 24” above the plant mound with sprays of small, bell–shaped flowers in white, peach, pink, or even bright red. They make a very nice addition to floral arrangements.
Some lovely flowering varieties include Paris, Bella Note, Lipstick, Ginger Ale and Cherry Cola.
Here in Oregon, Dan Hines of Terra Nova Nurseries is known for introducing new cultivars of Heuchera. To view the dazzling array of colors and textures visit Terra Nova’s website. The new cultivars coming out are hybrids of the species native to North America. Recent additions have included dwarf cultivars perfect for containers and small spaces. They are truly “Little Cuties”.
