I am doing my first shade garden. And well I don't know much about these plants... I am toying between placing a azalea (rosy lights) and a bleeding heart. Thing is: I don't know much about when these flower, for how long and after flowering is done which one has nicer foliage. ANYONE?? HELP!! PLEASE!!
Azalea or Bleeding Heart? Anyone know pros and cons?
Bleeding Heart - I have the dwarf variety. Blooms late spring into mid summer-ish.
http://davesgarden.com/pf/adv_search.php?searcher%5Bcommon%5D=bleeding+heart&searcher%5Bfamily%5D=&searcher%5Bgenus%5D=&searcher%5Bspecies%5D=&searcher%5Bcultivar%5D=&searcher%5Bhybridizer%5D=&search_prefs%5Bsort_by%5D=rating&images_prefs=both&Search=Search
Azalea - i dont know much about.
http://davesgarden.com/pf/adv_search.php?searcher%5Bcommon%5D=azalea&searcher%5Bfamily%5D=&searcher%5Bgenus%5D=&searcher%5Bspecies%5D=&searcher%5Bcultivar%5D=&searcher%5Bhybridizer%5D=&search_prefs%5Bsort_by%5D=rating&images_prefs=both&Search=Search
wow -learn something new every day -- i had no idea an azalea was the same as a rhododendron.
I have 2 in my front yard... eastern exposure. they are very pretty, but do not have a long bloom period. 2 weeks maybe if i'm lucky.
well, i am zone 5... so maybe in warmer zones, they last longer.
HTH
Terese
This message was edited Mar 15, 2007 12:30 PM
Bleeding Hearts bloom a little into summer for me, but they'll go dormant by the end of summer, and all the leaves will yellow and disappear. You have to figure out what to plant nearby that will grow to cover the bare spot. They are really pretty plants, though.
Rhododendrons will get much larger than bleeding hearts. They generally don't bloom a long time, but some types are evergreen. "Rosy Lights" are deciduous. "PJM" are evergreen - and are nice to have around in winter. The leaves don't stay green, but turn kind of a pleasant purplish color.
Here's a link to U of M - rhododendron and azalea for Minnesota.
http://www.extension.umn.edu/distribution/horticulture/DG2386.html
Peg
my dwarf bleeding heart keeps it's foliage til frost. here is the link to springhill, where i got mine from.
http://springhillnursery.com/product.asp_Q_pn_E_07625
I don't have azaleas. Being zone 5, I'm not sure I could.
I have the pink and white spectibile bleeding hearts and they are my absolute favorite spring flower. Mine start showing in April and bloom in early May. I plant them under an eave so it stays moist. They never die down completely and I cut them back in the fall. If it was dry they would go dormant. In a few years, they get about 4' wide, 3' tall. I also just planted the small ones, spectibile is gorgeous. I'll see if I can find last years picture.
Here it is May of last year.
I have bleeding hearts and northern lights azalea. The azalea bloom for about 2 weeks(2nd & 3rd week of May) Dicentra blooms for close to a month around early May to early June. I can tell you that the azalea are very slow growing and a 2 year old dicentra is larger than a 5 year old azalea. For this zone you can't beat the flower power of the azalea. You should get both ;)
Bigcityal, any other name for that azalea pictured, or is Northern the name? It's beautiful! Did you plant it out of the wind? I'm have a north wind exposure.
Northern light azalea is pretty plain, not a lot of leaves like more evergreen varieties.
Sally - the orange one is Mandarin lights and the pink one is Rosy lights. I don't know much about wind tolerance. These plants are just amazing when they flower and then just kind of hang in there the rest of the year.
This is White Lights
Is Cub Foods out of this state? They sell shrubs in gallon pots 2/$11 and always have the Northern Lights series.
Klehm's sells them too....for $$$$
http://www.songsparrow.com/2007new/plantlist.cfm?type=Woody%20Plants&startrow=1&pageType=plantlist&sorttype=Rhododendrons%20(Azalea)
Wow, you got all three. I'm really liking them! How tall and wide do yours get?
I think there are close to 10 kinds actually. Mine grow an inch a year.LOL They are about 2-3' tall and 1 1/2-2' wide. I saw some close to 4' tall - I should steal them, they're right by the road ;)
here's the closeup of Rosy Lights
ROTFL!!
I'm definately going to have to research these. I can't decide which color to go for, but the mandarin caught my eye first.
Our Cub Foods just closed down their store in Iowa City. I'm not sure they ever had a greenhouse. This will be a next year venture while I look them up and see just where I could put one.
Thanks for the eye candy photos!
trouble in Iowa City!
Our Cubs have closed a few also. I have seen a few of them for sale at other local places - you'll need to keep your eye out. Mandarin Lights is a must have alright.
Next year! I can't wait!
Sahlink, have you made up your mind yet :))
Don't forget the kurume azaleas. They are blooming now in my garden which means that they will probably bloom in about mid april for you. The flowers are single and small but they bloom all at the same time. What a show!
Also, different cultivars are different heights so be sure to notice that.
What is the zone for that one Dorothie?
I did buy some zone 6 ones at Walmart because they were guaranteed - it looks like they'll make it.
I split my old fashioned bleeding heart up so it looks smaller, I give away chunks of it every year as it reseeds for me. I have them on the east side and they don't go dormant for me.
You'll need ericaceous compost to plant your azalea as they are acid lovers unless you already know what type of soil you have. I have a white dicentra and the fresh green spring growth and dainty flowers are hard to beat and the foliage on mine stays around for quite a while.
I have no experience with azalea....but it's worth noting that the 'old fashioned' bleeding heart are tall, have steady early spring bloom--and then go dormant and eventually loose all foliage--but the dwarf bleeding hearts stay around all summer and often rebloom. I grow several of both and wouldn't be without them!
Galanthophile, thanks for the reminder. That's one reason I haven't planted them yet. I need soil amending first!
I know I'm late responding to this thread, but I couldn't resist. Azaleas and Bleeding Hearts are both musts for a shade garden. Be aware that the evergreen azaleas are usually fairly small and slow growing, but some deciduous ones can eventually get up to 5x5 ft or so, rivaling some rhododendrons in size.
I have both the red and white Dicentra spectabilis in different areas. The red one is next to a catmint, whose blue flowers go nicely with it and which covers it when it dies back. The white (alba) one seems to keep its leaves a lot longer. If you want smaller plants that don't die back in summer, check out Dicentra eximia, which although not as showy, has nice ferny foliage and pleasant pink flowers.
I see no mention of the Encore Azaleas here. They sporadically rebloom in the summer, after the big spring flush, and then another big flush in the fall. If you check the plant files for Dicentra, you will see some that rebloom also.
I have about four blrrding hearts and was almost crushed when we got a late snow fall and frost after it they started to come up really nicly. The whole inside of the plant was like jeyy but know that its warmed up the hearts are coming back!!! Cant wait I sure hope they flower it wouldnt be spring with out my hearts. They are very easy to grow I always give mine a shot of holly tone.