Bleeding heart
Lamprocapnos spectabilis · Papaveraceae Popular
An old-fashioned favourite with arching stems of heart-shaped flowers in late spring. It often goes dormant by midsummer, so pair it with hostas or ferns to fill the space it leaves.
- Size
- 2½ ft tall, 24 in 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
The planner designed this bed around bleeding 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 stands where it does.
The plants
- 1 Bleeding heart × 1, pink
- 2 Blue star creeper × 13, blue
- 3 Lungwort × 6, white
- 4 Northern sea oats × 5, tan
- 5 Japanese anemone 'Honorine Jobert' × 3, white
- 6 Bowles' golden sedge × 3, chartreuse leaves
- 7 Winter aconite × 12, yellow
Why this plant
- The only bells. The others are dense clusters, airy sprays and open bowls. Shape reads at a distance, where colours blur.
- A classic partner for lungwort. Both are on this plan. A pairing gardeners have proved outranks a general rule.
- The only pink.
Why here
- At the back, and only just seen. At 2½ ft it is about the height of Bowles' golden sedge (2½ ft) in front of it.
- A step in the back row. Next to northern sea oats (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 one of those weeks nothing else on the plan is in flower.
Planned as an English border: 5 of the 6 groups (83%) are drifts, longer along the bed than they are deep. The scheme leans cool (pink and blue) and uses yellow for warmth, with white and tan to calm things between them. There is more blue star creeper than anything else, 13 plants in all.
The planner's own design check: 12 Excellent, 4 Good, 1 Satisfactory. It flags one thing to watch: Winter aconite is highly poisonous to people, dogs, cats and horses. Northern sea oats spreads aggressively.
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 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.
Its arching stems need space around them to be seen, so plant one, not a clump. It dies back by midsummer and leaves a gap, so put it beside hostas or ferns, which leaf out late and cover the space.
- A single spring feature in a shady bed
- Woodland gardens
- Behind hostas and ferns that fill in later
What to plant with bleeding heart
Plants recorded as good partners for it, and what each pairing does:
- Hosta: its 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.
- Japanese painted fern: its silver leaves are a setting for the flowers, before and after; low enough (18 in) to stand in front of it; happy in the same moist soil.
- Siberian bugloss 'Jack Frost': 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.
Choosing between it and a look-alike? Bleeding heart vs Fringed bleeding heart.
Questions about bleeding heart
Does bleeding heart need sun or shade?
Bleeding 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 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 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 be planted?
24 in (60 cm) apart, from the middle of one plant to the middle of the next. That is about its full width, so each plant keeps its own outline.
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 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 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?
These come closest to doing what bleeding 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?
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?
Bleeding 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 look like in winter?
Bleeding heart dies down to the ground and there is nothing to see until spring. The old stems can be cut in autumn, or left until spring as shelter for overwintering insects.
Is bleeding heart good for bees and butterflies?
Bleeding heart is visited by butterflies and hummingbirds.
More Lamprocapnos
- Bleeding heart 'Gold Heart' Lamprocapnos spectabilis 'Gold Heart'
- 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
- Plants for a white garden
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, 24 in (60 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, herbaceous; green
- 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.