Bleeding heart 'Gold Heart'
Lamprocapnos spectabilis 'Gold Heart' · Papaveraceae
Golden-yellow leaves on peach-coloured stems, hung with the usual rose-pink and white hearts. A sight that stops visitors in spring.
- Size
- 2½ ft tall, 2½ ft wide
- Zones
- 3 to 9
- Light
- Part shade to shade
- Flowers
- Early May to early June
- Pets
- Toxic (moderate)
- Job in a bed
- Specimen
A bed built around bleeding heart 'Gold Heart'
The planner designed this bed around bleeding heart 'Gold Heart' when this page was made: a 12 × 6 ft (3.7 × 1.8 m) English border in zone 6, part shade. It chose the other plants from the 513 that suit those conditions, and says below why bleeding heart 'Gold Heart' stands where it does.
The plants
- 1 Bleeding heart 'Gold Heart' × 1, pink
- 2 Leadwort × 8, blue
- 3 Bellflower 'Dickson's Gold' × 24, blue
- 4 White snakeroot 'Chocolate' × 3, white
- 5 Japanese anemone 'Honorine Jobert' × 3, white
- 6 Palm sedge × 3, green leaves
- 7 Snowdrop × 8, white
- 8 Spring snowflake × 12, white
Why this plant
- The only pink.
Why here
- At the back, and only just seen. At 2½ ft it is about the height of palm sedge (2½ ft) in front of it.
- A step in the back row. Next to white snakeroot 'Chocolate' (3½ ft) and Japanese anemone 'Honorine Jobert' (4 ft): no two neighbours there are the same height, so the back steps up and down like a skyline.
- One plant, alone. A feature plant is seen as an object, and needs clear ground around it.
Why now
- In flower for six weeks. From early May to early June.
- Fills a gap. For five of those weeks nothing else on the plan is in flower.
- Leaves gone by midsummer. They die back and leave bare ground. A perennial that comes up late stands beside it, and grows over the gap.
Planned as an English border: 6 of the 8 groups (75%) are drifts, longer along the bed than they are deep. The back corners are held by white snakeroot 'Chocolate' and Japanese anemone 'Honorine Jobert', the tallest plants on the plan. The flowering is at its height from mid September, with 3 kinds out together.
The planner's own design check: 11 Excellent, 5 Good, 1 Satisfactory.
Open this bed in the planner Change its size, the sun or the style, move plants about, or swap one for another.
Where bleeding heart 'Gold Heart' goes in a border
At 2½ ft it belongs in the middle of a bed. In the planner's ten height classes it is medium (24 in to 2½ ft).
Its job: specimen. A feature plant with a shape of its own. It stands alone with room around it, and repeats only at a distance.
The gold foliage lights up shade for two months. Keep it out of strong sun, which scorches it, and pair it with blue: forget-me-nots, brunnera or blue hostas.
- Gold foliage for spring shade
- A focal point among blue and green leaves
- Woodland gardens
What to plant with bleeding heart 'Gold Heart'
Plants recorded as good partners for it, and what each pairing does:
- Siberian bugloss: in flower together for five weeks, from early May; bold leaves against its medium ones; low enough (16 in) to stand in front of it.
- Hosta 'Halcyon': its blue-green leaves are a setting for the flowers, before and after; bold leaves against its medium ones; low enough (18 in) to stand in front of it.
- Virginia bluebells: in flower together for two weeks, from early May; happy in the same moist soil.
Questions about bleeding heart 'Gold Heart'
Does bleeding heart 'Gold Heart' need sun or shade?
Bleeding heart 'Gold Heart' grows in part shade (2 to 4 hours of sun, mostly in the morning) and shade (less than 2 hours of direct sun, or bright dappled light). It is one of the few that also put up with deep shade.
It wants soil that stays evenly moist, rich in organic matter, and a good soak in dry spells.
What zones does bleeding heart 'Gold Heart' grow in?
USDA zones 3 to 9. It is hardy to zone 3, which means it survives winter nights down to about −30 °F (−34 °C).
Gardening in Canada? Use the USDA zone for your town: Canada's own zone map uses different numbers.
When does bleeding heart 'Gold Heart' flower in my zone?
In zone 5 it flowers early May to early June. As a spring flower it moves about a week for every zone: earlier where it is warmer, later where it is colder.
| Zone 3 | Mid May to mid June |
|---|---|
| Zone 4 | Early May to mid June |
| Zone 5 | Early May to early June |
| Zone 6 | Late April to early June |
| Zone 7 | Mid April to late May |
| Zone 8 | Mid April to late May |
| Zone 9 | Early April to late May |
Worked out from Hopkins' bioclimatic law: spring arrives about four days later for each degree of latitude north, and one zone is roughly two degrees. A warm spring or a cold one moves any garden two weeks either way.
How far apart should bleeding heart 'Gold Heart' be planted?
24 in (60 cm) apart, from the middle of one plant to the middle of the next. That is a little closer than its full width of 2½ ft (75 cm), so a group knits into one patch.
It grows 2½ ft (75 cm) tall. Give it the full distance from anything taller, or it will lean out towards the light.
How many bleeding heart 'Gold Heart' plants do I need?
At 24 in apart, set out in staggered rows:
- 3 to fill 10 square feet (about 1 m²)
- 6 for a single row 10 ft (3 m) long
- 10 to fill a 4 × 8 ft bed on its own
In a mixed border, plant it as one, with clear ground around it: a feature plant is seen as an object, and a group of them is a thicket.
In the bed above, the planner used one in one group.
Is bleeding heart 'Gold Heart' poisonous to dogs and cats?
Yes: moderate toxicity to people, dogs, cats and horses. All parts are poisonous if eaten, and the sap can irritate skin.
Rated from NC State Extension. Where references disagree, the more cautious rating is used.
Is there a pet-safe plant like bleeding heart 'Gold Heart'?
These come closest to doing what bleeding heart 'Gold Heart' does, and no toxicity is recorded for them:
- False Solomon's seal: the same flowering time; a drift, not a specimen, 6 in narrower.
- Wild geranium: the same flowering time and the same colour; a drift, not a specimen, 10 in shorter.
- Toad lily: a drift, not a specimen, 6 in narrower.
Matched the way the planner's Swap button matches plants: the same job in a bed, then size, then flowering time.
Do deer eat bleeding heart 'Gold Heart'?
Mostly not. NC State lists it as resistant to deer and rabbits. No plant is proof against a hungry deer in a hard winter, but this one is low on the menu.
What flowers after bleeding heart 'Gold Heart'?
Bleeding heart 'Gold Heart' is over by early June. These start as it finishes and carry the same spot on, so it never goes flat:
- Astilbe: from late June to mid July, 24 in tall.
- Lady's mantle: from late May to early July, 18 in tall, to stand in front of it and cover its fading stems.
- Cranesbill 'Rozanne': from early June to early October, 18 in tall, to stand in front of it and cover its fading stems.
What does bleeding heart 'Gold Heart' look like in winter?
Bleeding heart 'Gold Heart' has long gone by winter: it dies down in summer, soon after flowering, and comes back in spring.
Is bleeding heart 'Gold Heart' good for bees and butterflies?
Bleeding heart 'Gold Heart' is visited by butterflies and hummingbirds.
More Lamprocapnos
- Bleeding heart Lamprocapnos spectabilis
- White bleeding heart Lamprocapnos spectabilis 'Alba'
In these guides
- Plants for deep shade
- Plants that grow near black walnut
- Deer-resistant plants for shade
- Rabbit-resistant plants
- Garden plants toxic to cats
- Garden plants toxic to dogs
- Plants for hummingbirds
- Plants for butterflies
Zone guides: Zone 3 · Zone 4 · Zone 5 · Zone 6 · Zone 7 · Zone 8 · Zone 9
Every fact on record
- Type
- Perennial
- Size
- 2½ ft (75 cm) tall, 2½ ft (75 cm) wide
- Plant
- 24 in (60 cm) apart
- Height class
- Medium (24 in to 2½ ft)
- Place in the bed
- Middle
- Flowers
- Early May to early June; hanging bells; pink, white
- Leaves
- Medium texture, summer-dormant; chartreuse
- Shape
- Arching, clumping
- Hardy in
- USDA zones 3 to 9
- Light
- Part shade, shade
- Soil
- Rich, evenly moist
- Water
- Moderate
- Feeding
- Light, in spring
- Family
- Papaveraceae
- Comes from
- Siberia, Japan, Northern China, and Korea
- Attracts
- Butterflies, hummingbirds
- Stands up to
- Deer, rabbits, deep shade, black walnut
Checked against NC State Extension. Flowering times are for zone 5: later in colder zones, earlier in warmer ones. Toxicity and spread information is a general gardening guide, not veterinary or medical advice, and invasive status varies by region. If a person or pet eats a plant, contact poison control or a vet. Check your local invasive species list before planting anything with a spread warning.