Here's how the experiment of moving the heuchs to the sun is going.....well, in fact.
This has been a very rainy summer here though, so it remains to be seen if they will do as well in a normal summer.
But the color is intense in everything I've moved to the sun. Only a couple, like Midnight Rose, shrank and looked miserable, and they went back into shade.
Wow! That color is unbelievable! I have heard that Midnight Rose doesn't like the sun at all. I have mine growing in full shade and it is doing pretty well. One of my slower growers, but it is still putting up flower stalks so must be happy. Thanks for posting a picture of that gorgeous heuch.
That is gorgeous, dmc! It looks a lot like my Peach Flambee that isgrowing in the sun. My sun-grwon Marmalade has a lot more color variations. My Midnight Rose took a while to settle into the sun, but I like the way it has really darkened so that the pink splotches stand out.
My Midnight Rose actually shrank! not much to photograph right now.
dmcdevitt.. what an awesome colored Marmalade! - I missed this post somehow before. If you have any other orange colored heuchs, I' love your input...
Question for you all with peachy/orange colored heuchera such as Marmalade.
Even though my Peach Flambe seem to do fine and have pretty good coloring in full shade (north side of house under eaves) does yours seem to color up better with a fair amount of sun?
I bought Caramel that is just soaking up the sun and getting bigger and more colorful still sitting in it's purchased pot, and the Peach Flambe that get the same amount of sun as Caramel seem to have more orangey-red coloring, are shiny and just seem more vibrant.
How are yours?
I think I have mentioned somewhere before that my Marmalade just loves the sun! Peach Flambee seems to do well there, too, as does Midnight Rose, which someone else on another thread said only liked the shade at their house! On the other habd, I am not certain that my Caramel likes the sun. Good color there, but not a lot of growth. Cascade Dawn really does NOT like sun at my house, and we all know about Tiramisu's erratic behaviour!
Yes, my Caramels and Marmalades do seem to thrive with more sun. And, I think they have nicer color variety with more sun, as well.
Hmmmm My caramel is in more shade, but peach flambe is liking full sun with very vibrant color.
Thanks for your responses. Maybe here in the northern states the oranges can handle the sun better and thrive with some really nice color. I wasn't all that crazy about Caramel when I bought it but figured being a villosa, it would do well here. That one Caramel has grown on me so much that I had to buy more.
DMC, that Marmelade is gorgeous! I have one that gets sun, but the color is nowhere near as nice as yours!
bj601 - How long has yours been in the ground? I know you've been adding to your collection.
Medinac, marmelade has been in the ground for almost 3 years.
Well... I was hoping you were going to say you just planted yours this spring/summer. I guess that throws a wrench into my theory of northern sun and climate gives them good color in the sun. Hmmm.... sometimes I guess it's just hard to figure out what they like to get the most out of them.
I'd just like to throw in a thought here:
I know that, on the Heuchera Hoedown, for example, some people don't want another of a heuchera they already have. There are numerous reasons this could be so. However, even the pros admit that the cloning process is not 100% "accurate". Your Marmalade may be different from my Marmalade because of what parent went into the test tube!!!
Moral of the tale: If Marmalade or another is not what you hoped, get another one. Even planted in the same place, it could turn out differently --- better [or worse!].
I didn't realize there was that much variation in the clones, but that's a good idea.
Have you ever seen Heuchera 'Peacock Feathers'? This came out of a batch of 'Plum Pudding' "clones"! An extreme example of the variation/mutation that can occur, but illustrative.
I've never seen it and couldn't find a picture on the internet either. I'd love to see it, sounds interesting!
The only photo of it I have ever found is in Heims' book! Plate 56. Although he ma,e it and patented it, I guess he never did much with t commercially. Not a big seller to landscapers, I guess. But a very cool plant I would love to have!
Although my point was that 'Plum Pudding went into the cloning medium and 'Peacock Feathers' came out, I suppose you do need to see the plants ot good photos to grasp the point.
I googled Heuchera Peacock Feathers and found this thread. Still no listed sources. Does anyone have this one? Or know where to find it?
I didn't see a source for it there. Did I miss something?
WoW looked that one up in Heim's book. Has smaller narrower leaves and dark coloring, a bit like its parent.
medinac, I have Caramel and Peach Melba growing in almost full sun and they have done really well. I planted them Sept 2009, and they keep getting prettier, and brighter in color, each year! I've got pictures somewhere from when I first planted them. If I can find them, I'll take new ones so that you can see the difference. I'm fairly new to these fancy colorful ones and had to stop myself from getting one of each!
Natalie
I just moved Marmalade and its friends to a shadier spot last night. They all seem to be bleaching from the sun. Lots of Heucheras, lots of moving. Now they are receiving either morning sun or filtered light.
