Lungwort 'Diana Clare'
Pulmonaria 'Diana Clare' ·
Long, narrow leaves of almost solid, shining silver, with large violet-blue flowers striped in purple.
- Size
- 12 in tall, 18 in wide
- Zones
- 4 to 8
- Light
- Part shade to shade
- Flowers
- Early April to mid May
- Pets
- Not checked
- Job in a bed
- Drift
A bed built around lungwort 'Diana Clare'
The planner designed this bed around lungwort 'Diana Clare' 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 lungwort 'Diana Clare' stands where it does.
The plants
- 1 Lungwort 'Diana Clare' × 3, purple
- 2 Moor grass 'Greenlee' × 5, tan
- 3 White turtlehead × 5, white
- 4 Tall astilbe 'Superba' × 3, purple
- 5 Dwarf English boxwood × 1, dark green leaves
- 6 Golden ragwort × 13, yellow
- 7 Double snowdrop × 12, white
- 8 Winter aconite × 12, yellow
Why this plant
- The only airy sprays. The others are spires, plumes, daisies and others. Shape reads at a distance, where colours blur.
Why here
- On the front edge. At 12 in it frames the bed without hiding it, and it is in leaf all season. It finishes 34% of the edge.
- 3 plants in one run. An unbroken run of one kind gives the edge a clean line.
Why now
- In flower for 7 weeks. From early April to mid May.
- Fills a gap. For two of those weeks nothing else on the plan is in flower.
Planned as an English border: 4 of the 5 groups (80%) are drifts, longer along the bed than they are deep. The flowering is at its height in mid May, with 3 kinds out together. Golden ragwort is the plant there is most of: 13 of the 54.
The planner's own design check: 10 Excellent, 7 Good.
Open this bed in the planner Change its size, the sun or the style, move plants about, or swap one for another.
Where lungwort 'Diana Clare' goes in a border
At 12 in it belongs at the front of a bed. In the planner's ten height classes it is low (6 to 12 in).
Its job: drift. Planted in a small group of three or five, and repeated further along in the other number.
The best all-silver lungwort. Its long leaves stay clean of mildew, and from a distance a group of it looks like a pool of light under the trees.
- Silver foliage for shade
- Brightening dark corners
- Early flowers for bees
What to plant with lungwort 'Diana Clare'
Plants recorded as good partners for it, and what each pairing does:
- Black mondo grass: its black leaves are a setting for the flowers, before and after; spires rising out of its mound.
- Lenten rose: in flower together for six weeks, from early April; bold leaves against its medium ones.
- Hosta 'Blue Mouse Ears': its blue-green leaves are a setting for the flowers, before and after; spires rising out of its mound; happy in the same moist soil.
Questions about lungwort 'Diana Clare'
Does lungwort 'Diana Clare' need sun or shade?
Lungwort 'Diana Clare' 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 wants soil that stays evenly moist, rich in organic matter, and a good soak in dry spells.
What zones does lungwort 'Diana Clare' grow in?
USDA zones 4 to 8. It is hardy to zone 4, which means it survives winter nights down to about −20 °F (−29 °C).
Above zone 8 it struggles: the zones measure winter cold, but a plant's top zone usually means the summers are too hot or the winters too mild for it to rest.
Gardening in Canada? Use the USDA zone for your town: Canada's own zone map uses different numbers.
When does lungwort 'Diana Clare' flower in my zone?
In zone 5 it flowers early April to mid May. As a spring flower it moves about a week for every zone: earlier where it is warmer, later where it is colder.
| Zone 4 | Mid April to late May |
|---|---|
| Zone 5 | Early April to mid May |
| Zone 6 | Late March to early May |
| Zone 7 | Late March to early May |
| Zone 8 | Mid March to late April |
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 lungwort 'Diana Clare' be planted?
16 in (40 cm) apart, from the middle of one plant to the middle of the next. That is a little closer than its full width of 18 in (45 cm), so a group knits into one patch.
It grows 12 in (30 cm) tall. Give it the full distance from anything taller, or it will lean out towards the light.
How many lungwort 'Diana Clare' plants do I need?
At 16 in apart, set out in staggered rows:
- 7 to fill 10 square feet (about 1 m²)
- 8 for a single row 10 ft (3 m) long
- 21 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 three in one group.
Is there a native plant like lungwort 'Diana Clare'?
Lungwort 'Diana Clare' is not native to North America. These North American natives come closest to doing its job:
- Woodland phlox 'Blue Moon': the same job in a bed and the same size; flowers late April to late May, blue, not purple.
- Wild geranium 'Espresso': the same job in a bed; 4 in taller, flowers early May to early June.
- Jacob's ladder 'Stairway to Heaven': the same job in a bed and the same size; flowers early May to early June, blue, not purple.
Matched the way the planner's Swap button matches plants: the same job in a bed, then size, then flowering time.
What flowers after lungwort 'Diana Clare'?
Lungwort 'Diana Clare' is over by mid May. These start as it finishes and carry the same spot on, so it never goes flat:
- Sweet woodruff: from early May to early June, 8 in tall, to stand in front of it and cover its fading stems.
- Lady's mantle: from late May to early July, 18 in tall.
- Columbine: from early May to mid June, 24 in tall.
What does lungwort 'Diana Clare' look like in winter?
Lungwort 'Diana Clare' 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.
More Pulmonaria
- Lungwort Pulmonaria saccharata
- Lungwort 'Raspberry Splash' Pulmonaria 'Raspberry Splash'
- Lungwort 'Trevi Fountain' Pulmonaria 'Trevi Fountain'
- Red lungwort Pulmonaria rubra
In these guides
Every fact on record
- Type
- Perennial
- Size
- 12 in (30 cm) tall, 18 in (45 cm) wide
- Plant
- 16 in (40 cm) apart
- Height class
- Low (6 to 12 in)
- Place in the bed
- Front
- Flowers
- Early April to mid May; airy sprays; purple, blue
- Leaves
- Medium texture, semi-evergreen; silver
- Shape
- Mounding, clumping
- Hardy in
- USDA zones 4 to 8
- Light
- Part shade, shade
- Soil
- Rich, evenly moist
- Water
- Moderate
- Feeding
- None needed
Not yet checked against an outside reference: its figures rest on general horticultural knowledge. 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.