From Wayside Gardens in fall 2018
Heuchera sanguinea (bryzoides?) 'Weston Pink'
From Waterwise plant sale in spring 2019
Heuchera sanguinea 'Splendens'
From Waterwise plant sale in spring 2019, then 3 more from Agua Fria nursery in June 2019.
Photos
Expectations:
Heuchera normally will do well in dry(ish) shade. They don't want wet roots.
Heuchera normally will do well in dry(ish) shade. They don't want wet roots.
I got 'Weston Pink' for the shady area at the back of the potting bench curve, right up against the neighbor's garage wall to provide some open height against the stucco wall. The stalks are sturdy and stay upright. Foliage is nice and fresh all the time.
'Splendens' was in the dining room window garden, where the pops of red were visible from inside the house.
'Red Lightning' is noted for its gold and red foliage, not flowers.
The pink spikes sparkle in dappled shade and can be seen easily from the kitchen window.
The foliage is dark green with quite small leaves, not the unusual foliage of many coralbells.
Splendens
I added a single Heuchera 'Splendens' in the dining room window garden. Later I added three more big ones from Agua Fria nursery. It turns out 'Splendens' is a long bloomer too.
🌱 I have had a love-hate with heuchera in the past:
I absolutely loved 'Midnight Rose' in my old garden -- it was such a shining, rich deep wine color that sparkled from a distance. And didn't Newman's nursery have a whole bunch of them in fall 2018!
But I hesitated. The deep color isn't what's needed in the dining room window garden, and Mt. Cuba's trials noted a lack of vigor in 'Midnight Rose' -- which I noted too. I had to replace several over the years, they did not thrive well.
But how I loved the sparkly red at the garden's edge.
I tried many other varieties over the years, and didn't like many --'Caramel' was too brown, silver-veined "Greeen Spice' was okay, 'Citronelle' was bright, and I tried several bronzy colored ones that were nice.
As I kept having to replace 'Midnight Rose', I found other dark purple leaved heucheras but none were as nice as the clear red / pink speckled 'Midnight Rose'.
But I passed on them for here. Too dark, and plants in this climate need extra vigor just to survive.
Experiences:
Weston Pink
Foliage of Weston Pink is always fresh and green even after flowering. I got these for the shady area at the back of the potting bench curve, right up against the neighbor's garage wall. They bloom for a long time and are a frothy dark pink providing some open height against the stucco wall. The stalks are sturdy and stay upright.
The foliage is dark green with quite small leaves, not the unusual foliage of many coralbells.
But . . . in 2023 I took them out. They were too busy for the quiet shade under the aspens. I moved a few to the foot of the clematis near the garage wall.
Splendens
I added a single Heuchera 'Splendens' in the dining room window garden. Later I added three more big ones from Agua Fria nursery. It turns out 'Splendens' is a long bloomer too.
Splendens truly are bright red. After they go by in June, I can cut them back and they re-bloom in July.
But they struggled mightily even with lots of water after the first year, blooming sometimes, but declining each year until by 2023 there was almost nothing left and no flowers.
But they struggled mightily even with lots of water after the first year, blooming sometimes, but declining each year until by 2023 there was almost nothing left and no flowers.
Despite heucheras wanting dryish shade, mine slowly died out. So in 2023 I took them out and potted them up. The foliage immediately improved and filled out.
Red Lightning
'Red Lightning' is no longer in my garden. It had electric gold leaves with red veins.
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| April 26, 2019, emerging from its first winter |
I put three in the shade of the dining room window garden in late 2018. I was surprised how strongly these came back after winter.
 |
| By Sept. 2019 this was the color |
Ooof, by late summer they lost all their gold and red coloring and were just a bright solid chartreuse, a hard color to integrate in the garden.
The lovely rich red and gold is what I wanted, not flat yellow green!
In late 2019 I took two out and only one remained. That one was moved in 2020 to the back of the potting bench curve, then moved again to a shadier spot near the fence in the potting bench curve.
In late 2019 I took two out and only one remained. That one was moved in 2020 to the back of the potting bench curve, then moved again to a shadier spot near the fence in the potting bench curve.
Poor thing got moved too much. I never got the deep red it had the first spring, it was a sickly chartreuse color all the time.
I finally took it out.
🌱 I have had a love-hate with heuchera in the past:
 |
| 'Midnight Rose' in my former garden in 2013, clear garnet red and sparkly. |
But I hesitated. The deep color isn't what's needed in the dining room window garden, and Mt. Cuba's trials noted a lack of vigor in 'Midnight Rose' -- which I noted too. I had to replace several over the years, they did not thrive well.
But how I loved the sparkly red at the garden's edge.
I tried many other varieties over the years, and didn't like many --'Caramel' was too brown, silver-veined "Greeen Spice' was okay, 'Citronelle' was bright, and I tried several bronzy colored ones that were nice.
As I kept having to replace 'Midnight Rose', I found other dark purple leaved heucheras but none were as nice as the clear red / pink speckled 'Midnight Rose'.
But I passed on them for here. Too dark, and plants in this climate need extra vigor just to survive.