Lungwort 'Raspberry Splash'
Pulmonaria 'Raspberry Splash' ·
An upright lungwort with raspberry-pink flowers and narrow, pointed leaves heavily spotted with silver. It resists mildew better than older kinds.
- Size
- 12 in tall, 18 in wide
- Zones
- 4 to 9
- Light
- Part shade to shade
- Flowers
- Early April to mid May
- Pets
- No toxicity recorded
- Job in a bed
- Edging
A bed built around lungwort 'Raspberry Splash'
The planner designed this bed around lungwort 'Raspberry Splash' 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 'Raspberry Splash' stands where it does.
The plants
- 1 Lungwort 'Raspberry Splash' × 3, pink
- 2 Moor grass 'Greenlee' × 5, tan
- 3 Formosa toad lily × 3, purple
- 4 Tall astilbe 'Superba' × 4, purple
- 5 Inkberry 'Gem Box' × 1, dark green leaves
- 6 Virginia bluebells × 3, blue
- 7 Yellow trout lily × 12, yellow
- 8 Spring snowflake × 5, white
Why this plant
- The only dense clusters. The others are spires, plumes and bells. Shape reads at a distance, where colours blur.
- The only pink.
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 40% 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 one 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 scheme leans cool (pink, purple and blue) and uses yellow for warmth, with tan and white to calm things between them. Tall astilbe 'Superba' repeats along the bed to tie it together.
The planner's own design check: 11 Excellent, 6 Good. It flags one thing to watch: Nothing on this plan is highly poisonous or an aggressive spreader.
Open this bed in the planner Change its size, the sun or the style, move plants about, or swap one for another.
Where lungwort 'Raspberry Splash' 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: edging. A low, neat plant used in short runs of three or five along the front to finish the edge (or, in a formal bed, in one even row).
The narrow, silver-splashed leaves are sharper in outline than other lungworts, and good with blue hostas and the silver of a painted fern.
- Silver-spotted foliage for shade
- Early spring flowers
- Edging
What to plant with lungwort 'Raspberry Splash'
Plants recorded as good partners for it, and what each pairing does:
- Hosta 'Halcyon': its blue-green leaves are a setting for the flowers, before and after; bold leaves against its medium ones; spires rising out of its mound.
- Japanese painted fern: its silver leaves are a setting for the flowers, before and after; happy in the same moist soil.
- Siberian bugloss 'Jack Frost': in flower together for four weeks, from late April; bold leaves against its medium ones; happy in the same moist soil.
Questions about lungwort 'Raspberry Splash'
Does lungwort 'Raspberry Splash' need sun or shade?
Lungwort 'Raspberry Splash' 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 'Raspberry Splash' 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 lungwort 'Raspberry Splash' 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 |
| Zone 9 | Early March to mid 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 'Raspberry Splash' be planted?
18 in (45 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 12 in (30 cm) tall. Give it the full distance from anything taller, or it will lean out towards the light.
How many lungwort 'Raspberry Splash' plants do I need?
At 18 in apart, set out in staggered rows:
- 5 to fill 10 square feet (about 1 m²)
- 7 for a single row 10 ft (3 m) long
- 17 to fill a 4 × 8 ft bed on its own
In a mixed border, plant it as runs of three or five along the front (or one even row, in a formal bed).
In the bed above, the planner used three in one group.
Is lungwort 'Raspberry Splash' 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.
What flowers after lungwort 'Raspberry Splash'?
Lungwort 'Raspberry Splash' 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 'Raspberry Splash' look like in winter?
Lungwort 'Raspberry Splash' 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 'Diana Clare' Pulmonaria 'Diana Clare'
- Lungwort 'Trevi Fountain' Pulmonaria 'Trevi Fountain'
- Red lungwort Pulmonaria rubra
In these guides
Zone guides: Zone 4 · Zone 5 · Zone 6 · Zone 7 · Zone 8 · Zone 9
Every fact on record
- Type
- Perennial
- Size
- 12 in (30 cm) tall, 18 in (45 cm) wide
- Plant
- 18 in (45 cm) apart
- Height class
- Low (6 to 12 in)
- Place in the bed
- Front
- Flowers
- Early April to mid May; dense clusters; pink
- Leaves
- Medium texture, semi-evergreen; variegated
- Shape
- Mounding, clumping
- Hardy in
- USDA zones 4 to 9
- Light
- Part shade, shade
- Soil
- Rich, evenly moist
- Water
- Moderate
- Feeding
- Light, in spring
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.