What is it?
A cottage garden classic that’s an elegant option for light shade. In spring, it bursts out of nowhere with its fern-like foliage and heart-shaped pink-and-white flowers on arching stems. Its new Latin name is Lamprocapnos, but you may also know it by its former one, Dicentra.
Any good varieties?
‘Alba’ is the white form, while ‘Valentine’ has red-tinted stems, young foliage and bright red-and-white flowers. I find ‘Goldheart’s golden-yellow foliage rather sickly, and it’s not quite as robust as the other forms.
Grow it with?
Other shade-lovers such as pulmonarias, hardy geraniums, brunneras and tiarellas, or the early white tulip ‘Purissima’.
And where?
Bleeding heart needs moist soil, so keep it out of direct sun. It will do well in a big container, provided you keep up with watering.
Any drawbacks?
The foliage fades unattractively after flowering, especially if the soil is on the dry side, so cut it down once the plants start to die back. If that leaves you with a hole, partner with a summer-flowering plant to fill the gaps; shade-tolerant hardy geranium ‘Dilys’ has purple-veined pink flowers that keep coming from July to the first frosts.
What else does it do?
Cut some stems to bring inside for an instant spring display.
