Heuchera, Tiarella and Heucherella: Bright Foliage and Airy Blooms
By Veronica
From lime green varieties to deep purple, Heucheras offer an array of colour all year round in shaded areas. Native to the North American woodlands, these evergreen perennials thrive in dappled shade and make excellent ground cover. While Heuchera is clump-forming, Tiarella, its cousin, spreads through runners. It presents the same attractive features, although its flowerheads are denser. The foam flower, as it’s commonly known, also features a different leaf shape, often with contrasting colours. Lastly, Heucherella is a hybrid—a cross between the two first varieties.
Growing Heucheras, Tiarellas and Heucherellas
These colourful beauties are very easy to grow. They do best in dappled shade and in moist but well-drained compost. If you choose to grow them in pots, use a loam-based compost (made of silt, clay and sand), such as John Innes No. 2 or 3, which is moisture-retentive and well-drained.
During the growing season, from March to September, apply tomato feed fortnightly to encourage flowering, which occurs from June to September—and from May in the case of Tiarella.
While Heuchera is an evergreen perennial, its lower foliage can become a little tatty towards the end of the season. Remove all withered leaves in autumn. Tiarella is more of a semi-evergreen (retaining its foliage only during mild winters). The plant should be pruned in spring to keep it tidy and encourage new growth.
These plants are typically trouble-free, except for vine weevils. The adults create notches in the leaf edges, while the grubs feed on the roots. To avoid root damage, mulch around the plants with a thick layer of gravel. This will help prevent adult insects from laying their eggs in the soil.
Beautiful Varieties to Grow
Heuchera ‘Lime Marmalade’
One of the best varieties for shade, with bright lime green foliage that stands out. It produces small white flowers in summer.
Height and Spread: 0.4 x 0.4 m (including the flowers)
RHS Award of Garden Merit
Heuchera ‘Paris’
A green variety with marked leaf veins and a silver sheen. ‘Paris’ produces deep pink flowers that contrast beautifully with the foliage.
Height and Spread: 0.4 x 0.4 m (including the flowers)
RHS Award of Garden Merit
Heuchera ‘Marmalade’
This two-tone Heuchera is a best-seller. The pink-bronze ruffled leaves have bright pink undersides. Flowers are inconspicuous; this variety is grown mainly for its outstanding foliage.
Height and Spread: 0.3 x 0.5 m
RHS Award of Garden Merit
Credit Photo (cropped) Dominicus Johannes Bergsma, licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license.
Heuchera ‘Plum Pudding’
Another Heuchera with a metallic shine, this purple variety presents deep pink leaves with darker veins. Flowers are white.
Height and Spread: 0.6 x 0.4 m (including the flowers)
credit photo (cropped) David J. Stang, licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license.
Heuchera ‘Shanghai’
The silver-purple leaves of ‘Shanghai’ have dark veins, making it one of the most dramatic varieties.
Height and Spread: 0.3 x 0.3 m
Heuchera ‘Forever Purple’
Noted for the intensity of its colour, this variety is a true showstopper. The ultra-purple leaves have dark, near-black veins. It flowers on short stems, producing spikes of pink-purple blooms in summer.
Height and Spread: 0.6 x 0.4 m (including the flowers)
Credit photo (cropped) by Leonora (Ellie) E, licensed under Attribution-ShareAlike 2.0 Generic
Heucherella ‘Eye Spy’
Light green and burgundy leaves adorn this Heucherella when young, then turn green with a silver sheen as they mature. The flowers are similar to those of the Heuchera—small, bell-shaped, pink blooms on slender stems.
Height and Spread: 0.3 x 0.3 m
Heucherella ‘Solar Eclipse’
One of the most popular varieties due to its superb two-tone foliage. The rusty-red leaves present a lime green to golden margin. Flowers are white.
Height and Spread: 0.4 x 0.4 m
Heucherella ‘Pink Fizz’
A green variety with a silver glow and dark veins. Similar to ‘Paris’, but with more pastel hues and paler, yet attractive, flowers—closer to those of the Tiarella. Particularly free-flowering.
Height and Spread: 0.2 x 0.45 m
Tiarella ‘Pink Skyrocket’
This all-time favourite is very floriferous. Its deeply lobed foliage is also very attractive, with purple veins.
Height and Spread: 0.3 x 0.3 m
RHS Award of Garden Merit
In a nutshell, Heucheras, Heucherellas and Tiarellas are highly decorative ground covers for shaded areas. Plant them in clumps (always in odd numbers) at the front of borders, along pathways, or under large shrubs and trees to bring life to the darker corners of your garden. Also suitable for containers, thanks to their compact size—they make beautiful arrangements combined with other shade-loving plants such as ferns or evergreen shrubs like Nandina or Leucothoe.
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