Bleeding heart plant

I thought bleeding hearts grew mostly in shade, but the tag on this dicenta formosa "Luxuriant" that we purchased on a whim yesterday states "Full sun to shade"
I planted it in a large container pot and have it under a lilac tree/dogwood tree in shade. A friend of mine grows hers in her flowerbeds and some in large containers near her pond and they are beautiful! Her back yard is shady but with filters light from the trees.

Bleeding hearts will grow in a range of lighting conditions. I have one in nearly full shade that is spectacular, and it keeps is beautiful foliage nearly all year, where those in more sun will die down once finished blooming.

Mine is on the north side of the house under a Kousa Dogwood. It only gets filtered morning sun. I think the foliage lasts a lot longer if it's planted in the shade.

My Gold Heart thrives in fairly deep shade.
Blooms heavily and keeps it's foliage most of the summer.

Pippi said she has 'Luxuriant':
http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/go/72947/

It will do very well in sun, dappled shade or even shade and it is the longest blooming one in our gardens. It really does not look like dicentra spectabilis but it is a lovely plant.

I went to the link and remember my mom used to have that type of Bleeding Heart. She had hers in full sun, but at the time the house was just built and there wasn't a lot of shade yet. Sounds like a very versatile plant.

Pastime..your bleeding heart is beautiful and love that emerald green glazing ball. I just created a new flowerbed, planting a lot of my WS plants and plants that were Pass-alongs from generous gardeners from here and gardenweb. Can't wait till they start blooming in a few months. Once that gets established and I see how successful the flowerbed has been, will rethink what I want to put in that bed in the Fall for spring blooming. Would love to have one of those glazing balls to add, plus want to look at some hardscape border pavers. Since they are a bit of an investment, I want to make sure I'm satisfied with the flowerbed before I spend for those pavers.

Thank you, it's an old one, probably 20 years. I've never tried to divide it. Prefer to leave well enough alone. I used to have a silver gazing ball, but the dog was dragging an empty garbage bag around the yard and knocked it over. They are as thin as a Christmas ornament and shatter like one. Had the green one for several years and keep it in a spot away from doggie.

No point in putting pavers down until you're satisfied with your garden. It would just be extra work moving them. Even when you butt them (pavers) up tight, weeds still manage to pop up between them. Have you thought about using steel edging instead? Both can be an expensive investment.

My d. spectabilis is in quite deep shade and prospers. Its white sister gets a bit more sun and also is happy. For some reason the two reliable d. eximia in the moist, fertile soil have disappeared--but one seedling appeared in the base of the clethra where i can't get it out. Oh, and my d. cucullaria (Dutchman's breeches) was positively exuberant this year!

Although my D.spectabilii (is that the plural of spectabilis?) only get a couple of hours sun in late afternoon, they are going gangbusters right now. I have some catmint planted nearby to cover the shrivelled remains in August. The white version, D.s. 'Alba', gets 3-4 hours sun and is doing just as well. Then there are the D. eximia. They pop up all over the place, sun or shade, and although my wife just referred to them disparagingly as "weeds", I just transplant them to fill in empty spots where something else has not overwintered.

I believe 'Luxuriant' is the one Pippi asked about when she began this thread and it is a bit on the weedy side since it does pop up everywhere. I do as you do, Don, and just move them to a vacancy. It's surprising how eager they are to live through dry or wet, shade or sun.

I planted a few last year, and they disappeared with nothing to show for it. No foliage, no blooms. I thought they were a bust.

This year, they came up. One had some lovely blooms. The others only have foliage. But I'm hoping they'll do better next year.

Anyway, I was definitely, pleasantly surprised. I guess they are tougher than people generally think.