Bleeding Heart Plant Care: 5 Types of Bleeding Heart Flowers

The bleeding heart plant type (Dicentra spectabilis or Lamprocapnos spectabilis) is a herbaceous perennial cultivar characterized by its arching stems, blue-green foliage, short bloom time, resilient dormancy period, and distinctive, heart-shaped flowers. These wildflowers can grow outside in a woodland garden as well as indoors as houseplants so long as you meet their needs for partial shade and humus-rich soil.

There are several different types of bleeding heart plants that can sprout in the shady spots of your garden in early to late spring. Here are five you might consider:

1. 1. Lamprocapnos spectabilis: This old-fashioned bleeding heart flower also goes by Dicentra spectabilis—the two names are synonymous. The ‘Alba’ version is characterized by white flowers, while ‘Gold Heart’ is known for its gold foliage.
2. 2. Dicentra cucullaria: Also referred to by the common name Dutchman’s breeches, these white bleeding heart flowers look like pairs of pants.
3. 3. Dicentra eximia: Sometimes called fringed bleeding heart, this ferny plant produces pink flowers that seem to have little wings.
4. 4. Dicentra formosa: This cultivar hails from the Pacific region of the world and its wildflowers stretch out a little longer than those of some of its relatives.
5. 5. Dicentra ‘King of Hearts’: Also called fern-leaf bleeding heart plants, this grouping of the genus is known for its red flowers.

If you’re looking to grow bleeding hearts, you should consider what they need to have a healthy growing season. Here are seven tips to see new growths through early spring, mid-summer, winter, and beyond:

1. 1. Mind the climate. Bleeding heart plants do best in USDA Hardiness Zones 2–9. They can tolerate winters ranging from -50 degrees Fahrenheit to 30 degrees Fahrenheit. Any colder than that, and they’ll have a hard time reaching their full potential. Look up your Hardiness Zone to determine whether your garden meets the criteria. On the other hand, keeping these plants indoors can help you provide the right temperatures year-round.
2. 2. Nurture the soil. These flowers prefer moist soil, so you should water bleeding hearts about once a week. Before planting them, throw some mulch (organic matter) into your garden to facilitate a healthy soil pH for your bleeding heart plants. This organic soil will help keep them healthy and give their roots plenty of room to stretch out.
3. 3. Give them shade. Bleeding heart plants need shade more than many other elements of your garden. While they can tolerate full sun in colder regions, it’s still a best practice to plant them in as close to full shade as possible unless you’re ready for them to enter dormancy as soon as the early summer hits.
4. 4. Keep an eye out for pests. As with many other plants, these flowers can face attacks from insects and disease. Fend off aphids, snails, slugs, and so on by keeping a vigilant eye out for their appearance. You should also keep your plants healthy and an insecticide at the ready in the worst-case scenario. If you notice mildew or the signs of verticillium wilt on your bleeding heart plants, it’s probably time to shear off the affected area.
   
5. 5. Place companion plants nearby. To boost the amount of shade these plants can handle in your garden, plant other flowers as ground cover. Coral bells, astilbe flowers, hellebores, and hostas can provide an amount of shade, look attractive, and pair well with bleeding hearts as cut flowers.
6. 6. Prune at the right time. Bleeding heart plants can spend as much, if not more, time in dormancy as they do blooming, so choosing the right time to prune can be tricky. Wait until your new plants turn brown to cut them back down toward the ground. As soon as the heat of summer and the chill of winter pass, they’ll bloom again.
7. 7. Propagate if you wish. As these plants grow, you might decide it’s a good idea to spread them throughout your garden. Transplanting or potting them is simple. Either dig up the bare roots and divide them or place stem cuttings in new soil. They’ll start growing anew as soon as weather conditions permit.

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