Hairy alumroot 'Autumn Bride'
Heuchera villosa 'Autumn Bride' · Saxifragaceae
A big, bold alumroot with large, velvety, light green leaves and tall wands of white flowers in early autumn, when most coral bells have long finished.
- Size
- 24 in tall, 2½ ft wide
- Zones
- 4 to 9
- Light
- Part sun to shade
- Flowers
- Late August to early October
- Pets
- No toxicity recorded
- Job in a bed
- Drift
A bed built around hairy alumroot 'Autumn Bride'
The planner designed this bed around hairy alumroot 'Autumn Bride' 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 hairy alumroot 'Autumn Bride' stands where it does.
The plants
- 1 Hairy alumroot 'Autumn Bride' × 1, white
- 2 Moor grass 'Greenlee' × 11, tan
- 3 Polyanthus primrose × 8, yellow
- 4 Foxglove × 3, purple
- 5 Inkberry 'Gem Box' × 1, dark green leaves
- 6 Blue wood aster × 5, lavender
- 7 Winter cyclamen × 5, pink
- 8 Hardy cyclamen × 7, pink
Why this plant
- The only airy sprays. The others are spires, dense clusters and daisies. Shape reads at a distance, where colours blur.
- The only white. White sits between stronger colours and calms them.
Why here
- At the back. At 24 in it is seen over moor grass 'Greenlee' (12 in) in front of it, and has nothing behind it to hide.
- A step in the back row. Next to blue wood aster (3 ft) and inkberry 'Gem Box' (2½ ft): no two neighbours there are the same height, so the back steps up and down like a skyline.
- One plant. Three or more is usual for a plant of this kind, and reads better.
Why now
- In flower for 7 weeks. From late August to early October.
- Part of the bed's peak. With blue wood aster and hardy cyclamen in mid September: 3 kinds at once. No week has more.
Planned as an English border: 4 of the 5 groups (80%) are drifts, longer along the bed than they are deep. Neither end outweighs the other: the visual weight is split 50 to 50, left to right. The most in flower at one time is 3 kinds, from mid September.
The planner's own design check: 14 Excellent, 1 Good, 2 Satisfactory.
Open this bed in the planner Change its size, the sun or the style, move plants about, or swap one for another.
Where hairy alumroot 'Autumn Bride' goes in a border
At 24 in it belongs in the middle of a bed. In the planner's ten height classes it is medium short (18 to 24 in).
Its job: drift. Planted in a small group of three or five, and repeated further along in the other number.
It does the job of a hosta, a broad mound of big leaves, in drier shade and without the slugs, and then flowers in September. It tolerates southern heat and humidity better than the fancy-leaved hybrids.
- Bold foliage for dry shade
- Late white flowers under trees
- A native alternative to hosta that deer leave alone
What to plant with hairy alumroot 'Autumn Bride'
Plants recorded as good partners for it, and what each pairing does:
- Christmas fern: its dark green leaves are a setting for the flowers, before and after; medium leaves against its bold ones.
- White wood aster: in flower together for seven weeks, from late August; medium leaves against its bold ones.
- Japanese forest grass 'Aureola': its chartreuse leaves are a setting for the flowers, before and after; fine leaves against its bold ones.
Questions about hairy alumroot 'Autumn Bride'
Does hairy alumroot 'Autumn Bride' need sun or shade?
Hairy alumroot 'Autumn Bride' grows in part sun (4 to 6 hours of sun, including some afternoon sun), 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 wants ordinary well-drained soil, of average fertility, and a good soak in dry spells.
What zones does hairy alumroot 'Autumn Bride' grow in?
USDA zones 4 to 9. It is hardy to zone 4, which means it survives winter nights down to about −20 °F (−29 °C).
Gardening in Canada? Use the USDA zone for your town: Canada's own zone map uses different numbers.
When does hairy alumroot 'Autumn Bride' flower in my zone?
In zone 5 it flowers late August to early October. As a summer flower it moves about half a week for every zone: earlier where it is warmer.
| Zone 4 | Late August to early October |
|---|---|
| Zone 5 | Late August to early October |
| Zone 6 | Late August to early October |
| Zone 7 | Mid August to early October |
| Zone 8 | Mid August to early October |
| Zone 9 | Early August to early October |
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 hairy alumroot 'Autumn Bride' 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 24 in (60 cm) tall. Give it the full distance from anything taller, or it will lean out towards the light.
How many hairy alumroot 'Autumn Bride' 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 a group of three or five, with a second group further along in the other number.
In the bed above, the planner used one in one group.
Is hairy alumroot 'Autumn Bride' poisonous to dogs and cats?
No toxicity is recorded for dogs, cats, horses or people, according to NC State Extension.
"Not toxic" is not "edible": a pet that eats a lot of any plant can be sick.
Do deer eat hairy alumroot 'Autumn Bride'?
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 hairy alumroot 'Autumn Bride'?
Hairy alumroot 'Autumn Bride' is over by early October. These start as it finishes and carry the same spot on, so it never goes flat:
- Japanese onion 'Ozawa': from early October to early November, 10 in tall, to stand in front of it and cover its fading stems.
- Bodnant viburnum 'Dawn': from early November to late December, 10 ft tall.
- Common witch hazel: from mid October to late November, 15 ft tall.
What does hairy alumroot 'Autumn Bride' look like in winter?
Hairy alumroot 'Autumn Bride' holds some of its leaves into winter, more in a mild year or a sheltered spot, and they look tired by March. Cut the old ones off as new growth starts.
Is hairy alumroot 'Autumn Bride' good for bees and butterflies?
Hairy alumroot 'Autumn Bride' is visited by pollinators and specialist bees.
It is native to the United States (this is a named variety of the native plant).
More Heuchera
- American alumroot Heuchera americana
- Coral bells Heuchera
- Coral bells 'Berry Smoothie' Heuchera 'Berry Smoothie'
- Coral bells 'Caramel' Heuchera 'Caramel'
- Coral bells 'Citronelle' Heuchera 'Citronelle'
- Coral bells 'Firefly' Heuchera sanguinea 'Leuchtkäfer'
- Coral bells 'Georgia Peach' Heuchera 'Georgia Peach'
- Coral bells 'Green Spice' Heuchera americana 'Green Spice'
- Coral bells 'Lime Rickey' Heuchera 'Lime Rickey'
- Coral bells 'Obsidian' Heuchera 'Obsidian'
- Coral bells 'Palace Purple' Heuchera micrantha 'Palace Purple'
- Coral bells 'Plum Pudding' Heuchera 'Plum Pudding'
- Prairie alumroot Heuchera richardsonii
- Scarlet coral bells Heuchera sanguinea
In these guides
- Plants that grow near black walnut
- Deer-resistant plants for shade
- Rabbit-resistant plants
- Pet-safe plants for shade
- Native perennials for pollinators
- Native plants for shade
- Plants for bees
- Plants that flower in fall
- Plants for a white garden
Zone guides: Zone 4 · Zone 5 · Zone 6 · Zone 7 · Zone 8 · Zone 9
Every fact on record
- Type
- Perennial
- Size
- 24 in (60 cm) tall, 2½ ft (75 cm) wide
- Plant
- 24 in (60 cm) apart
- Height class
- Medium short (18 to 24 in)
- Place in the bed
- Middle
- Flowers
- Late August to early October; airy sprays; white
- Leaves
- Bold texture, semi-evergreen; green
- Shape
- Mounding, clumping
- Hardy in
- USDA zones 4 to 9
- Light
- Part sun, part shade, shade
- Soil
- Average, well-drained
- Water
- Moderate
- Feeding
- Light, in spring
- Family
- Saxifragaceae
- Comes from
- Eastern United States - native from New York to northern Georgia
- Attracts
- Pollinators, specialist bees
- Stands up to
- Deer, rabbits, heat, humidity, 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.