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Does Heuchera Blackout look just like Palace Purple?

linnea56 (zone 5b Chicago)

12 years ago

I bought some fancy heucheras (coral bells) last fall when a local high end nursery was going out of business. I focused on ones with purple leaves for a new bed. 3 different varieties, all shades of black/purple, just with different textures or edges.

I got Obsidian, Stormy Seas, and Blackout.

All made it though the winter well, and are putting out new leaves. The Obsidian looks great.

But two of what were labeled Blackout look this spring, just like Palace Purple! I would certainly not intentionally have bought Palace Purple. I have it edging another bed, and know it well enough to not have accidentally picked it up, even if it was mislabeled. I wouldn't need a tag to ID PP. PP is more bronzy than purple, and leaves are pointy, like maple leaves. So it MUST have looked more purple when I bought it (?).

Has anyone had this happen? Had a heuchera "turn into" a common variety the next year? Or does Blackout just have a leaf form similar to PP, and will develop the right coloration later?

Comments (5)

ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
12 years ago
hey

werent you just complaining how cold and slow this spring has been ...

perhaps it is a bit early.. on first flush .. to be comparing their potential ...

a lot of my hosta come up.. looking all the same.. in the first month of spring.. [if it ever gets here this year] .... if i were to remove all the look alikes now.. or be irritated about it ... i would not have many left ....

i vote for giving them a month.. and see how they respond over the rest of summer.. before coming to any conclusions as to their ultimate performance ...

ken
gardengal48 (PNW Z8/9)
12 years ago
To my eye, other than a somewhat similar leaf shape, 'Blackout' looks nothing like PP. OTOH, 'Stormy Seas' does, particularly with the range of color changes it goes through (although foliage a bit more ruffled).

I have either grown or sold darn near every heuchera on offer and I've yet to see a cultivar revert:-) And PP is a species cultivar (micrantha), while 'Blackout' is a hybrid selection. Unless mislabeled, I'd guess these will assume a more typical appearance as the season progresses. The almost black color is best developed in a lot of sun.....too much shade can 'green' up the foliage, producing a bronze cast.
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coolplantsguy
12 years ago
The other "problem" is that PP is a seed strain, so naturally, and depending upon the source, there will be more or less variability in any crop/population. I have seen some very glossy, roundish, dark-leaved, almost black forms and some pointier, more chocolately-brown forms.

In any case linnea, as ken mentioned, it is really too early in the season to truly evaluate and decide. ;)
linnea56 (zone 5b Chicago)
Original Author
12 years ago
I'm not suggesting yanking it out or anything. If nothing else, they look good and healthy. It's more that at this time of year, I have the time to walk around and notice things, and wonder out loud, as it were. Later on, I'll be too busy (I have a seasonal business that gets very busy from early June onward) to be observant, much less move anything around. :)

They will get a lot of sun in that spot (morning sun until about 1 pm), so will get as black as they can.

coolplantsguy, I've noticed that variability in PP before. I bought about 20 in quart size about 10 years ago to edge a bed, not really paying much attention when I picked them out as to whether they matched each other. Sometime later I noticed that I had at least 3 kinds that looked different, mostly in the gloss of the leaves, but also in color and shape.
woodthrush
12 years ago
I don't think Black Out and Purple Palace look anything alike. Black Out is so much darker than PP.

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