Columbine and Coral Bells in Full Sun??

14 years ago

I always thought that Columbine and Coral Bells would not do well in full sun, but I just bought:

Columbine Little Lanterns - Aquilegia canadensis, Coral Bells Splendens - Huechera sanguinea, and finally Palace Purple Coral Bells - Heuchera micrantha and they all say Full sun to partial shade.

Anyone have good results growing them in full sun? If so perhaps I will plant them somewhere other than where I was thinking.

Thanks!

Ken

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Comments (5)

daylily_dreamer
14 years ago
My columbine has always been in full sun. Of the ones you mentioned,I only have Palace Purple (new last year) and it did well in part shade. I have Miracle in part shade and it didn't get quite as colorful as I think it should. I have two old coral bells that I don't know the names of - one that is green with pink flowers that has always done well in full sun. The other is a red with white blooms. I have 3 clumps (all from the original plant) and have them planted in 3 different lights. The full sun one gets a delightful orange tint to it in the fall. The part shade is a beautiful red and the full shade is a purple-red. Hope this helps
laceyvail 6A, WV
14 years ago
Most columbine here in full sun.
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Hi: I'm out in Lake Elsinore and lived for many years in Orange County. As far as I know, heucheras need protection from full sun. The only possibility for some sun would be if they were established plants. The picture actually shows sunburn, which means get out of the sun. In addition, watering every other day is making it worse. You can try to water every day or in the evening and again in the morning for the balance of the summer and hope for the best. Just some general rules: The mulch is covering the crown of the plant, which is the center of the plant where the green part meets the roots. For the most part, plants like their crown above ground and uncovered (this is not the problem in this case). In addition, I rarely plant anything in June, July or August, because the tender roots of young plants cannot deal with the hot sun. The optimum time to plant for the summer is in October and November so that plants, whether annuals or perennials, will have time to establish a root system that will stand up to our intense sun.
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I'd advise part shade for these plants.People in coastal zones could grow them in full sun.
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The bed with the leopard plants is located off a corner of the back of my home and has a lot of bright light in the morning but no direct sun because of a large, high trimmed sweet gum tree (I believe its a sweet gum) about 15-20feet away. In the afternoon the area does not have as much light because it is shaded by my home. I've read some other recent threads on here and from your advice, I believe they would do fine but probably not thrive like they would with some morning sun. Maybe some of the lighter colored coral bells would be best. Any other recommendations for some shade loving groundcovers? As far as the heuchera under the maple tree, I will watch them and see how they do. I will most likely trim the tree up a little to get some more light in there. When I planted them, it was not very difficult to dig the holes (not a significant mass of roots) so I believe I planted them far enough away. There are also some Autumn ferns under the tree and closer to the base. They've been there for about three years and seem to be doing well with huge leaves. The maple is about 20 years old and has already reached around 25ft tall so hopefully it will be ok.
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mxk3 z5b_MI
14 years ago
I believe some cultivars of coral bells tolerate full sun better than others - I have "Plum Pudding" in full sun, and it never misses a beat. I have heard "Palace Purple" tolerates sun well, so I think you made a good choice there.

However, even if sun tolerant, they will not tolerate DRY full sun - they'll fry to a crisp.
anitamo
14 years ago
My 'Little Lanterns' gets eastern sun, but is at the base of a boxwood, so not full sun. It does well. You will love, love, love this plant. None of my heuchera are in full sun, so I can't give you any advice on that.
tepelus
14 years ago
I believe some heuchera cultivars prefer more sun than others. I've read that the darker leaved ones like more sun (my Midnight Rose seems to like the sun), whereas the lighter leaved ones like more shade, and the chartreuse/yellow ones like the least amount of sun, but like early morning or evening sun. My Lime Rickey seems to enjoy its shady spot, where the only sun it gets is from about 6pm on. Most of my heuchera though get light or dappled shade.

Karen

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Columbine and Coral Bells in Full Sun??

Comments (5)

daylily_dreamer

laceyvail 6A, WV

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mxk3 z5b_MI

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tepelus

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