Western bleeding heart
Dicentra formosa · Papaveraceae
Lacy, grey-green leaves spread into a soft carpet, with clusters of narrow, mauve-pink hearts nodding above them in spring and early summer.
- Size
- 16 in tall, 24 in wide
- Zones
- 4 to 8
- Light
- Part shade to shade
- Flowers
- Early May to late June
- Pets
- Toxic (mild)
- Job in a bed
- Carpet
A bed built around western bleeding heart
The planner designed this bed around western 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 western bleeding heart stands where it does.
The plants
- 1 Western bleeding heart × 3, pink
- 2 Leadwort × 22, blue
- 3 Dwarf lady's mantle × 10, green
- 4 Solomon's seal × 3, white
- 5 Log fern × 3, dark green leaves
- 6 White bleeding heart × 1, white
- 7 Yellow trout lily × 8, yellow
- 8 Fawn lily 'White Beauty' × 7, white
Why this plant
- The only fine leaves here. The rest are medium. A change of leaf keeps plants distinct when nothing is in flower.
- The only pink.
Why here
- Under the taller plants. It runs back between them as living mulch: there its job is to cover the soil, not to be looked at.
- 3 plants in one group. Massed, one kind reads as a single shape. Scattered, it would look spotty.
Why now
- In flower for 9 weeks. From early May to late June.
- Part of the bed's peak. With Solomon's seal, white bleeding heart, yellow trout lily and others in early May: 5 kinds at once. No week has more.
Planned as an English border: 5 of the 6 groups (83%) 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. White is the colour seen most, on 3 of the 7 kinds grown for their flowers.
The planner's own design check: 12 Excellent, 4 Good, 1 Satisfactory. 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 western bleeding heart goes in a border
At 16 in it belongs at the front of a bed. In the planner's ten height classes it is short (12 to 18 in).
Its job: carpet. A groundcover planted in threes and fives to cover the soil: along the front, and just behind it.
A native of Pacific coast forests that makes a groundcover in shade. It runs gently underground, filling the spaces between ferns and shrubs, and goes dormant in dry summers.
- Groundcover in woodland shade
- Pacific Northwest native planting
- Under rhododendrons
What to plant with western bleeding heart
Plants recorded as good partners for it, and what each pairing does:
- Western sword fern: its dark green leaves are a setting for the flowers, before and after; tall enough (3½ ft) to stand behind it.
- Deer fern: its dark green leaves are a setting for the flowers, before and after; happy in the same moist soil.
- Foamflower: in flower together for five weeks, from early May; spires rising out of its mound; happy in the same moist soil.
Questions about western bleeding heart
Does western bleeding heart need sun or shade?
Western 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 wants soil that stays evenly moist, rich in organic matter, and a good soak in dry spells.
What zones does western bleeding heart 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 western bleeding heart flower in my zone?
In zone 5 it flowers early May to late June. As a spring flower it moves about a week for every zone: earlier where it is warmer, later where it is colder.
| Zone 4 | Early May to early July |
|---|---|
| Zone 5 | Early May to late June |
| Zone 6 | Late April to late June |
| Zone 7 | Mid April to late June |
| Zone 8 | Mid April to late June |
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 western bleeding heart be planted?
18 in (45 cm) apart, from the middle of one plant to the middle of the next. That is a little closer than its full width of 24 in (60 cm), so a group knits into one patch.
It grows 16 in (40 cm) tall. Give it the full distance from anything taller, or it will lean out towards the light.
How many western bleeding heart 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 threes and fives, along the front and just behind it.
In the bed above, the planner used three in one group.
Is western bleeding heart poisonous to dogs and cats?
Yes: mild toxicity to people, dogs, cats and horses. All parts are poisonous if eaten. The sap can irritate skin and eyes.
Is there a pet-safe plant like western bleeding heart?
These come closest to doing what western bleeding heart does, and no toxicity is recorded for them:
- Spotted dead nettle: the same job in a bed, the same flowering time and the same colour; 8 in shorter, medium leaves, not fine.
- Wild geranium 'Espresso': the same size and the same colour; a drift, not a carpet, flowers early May to early June.
- Foamflower: the same job in a bed; 6 in shorter, 6 in narrower.
Matched the way the planner's Swap button matches plants: the same job in a bed, then size, then flowering time.
Will western bleeding heart spread?
It spreads sideways, by runners or roots; the risk of it taking over is moderate. Spreads by creeping rhizomes and seed in moist shade. Easy to pull where it is not wanted.
What flowers after western bleeding heart?
Western bleeding heart is over by late 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.
- Bigleaf hydrangea 'Endless Summer': from late June to mid September, 4 ft tall.
- Aaron's beard: from late June to late August, 14 in tall.
What does western bleeding heart look like in winter?
Western 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.
More Dicentra
- Bleeding heart 'King of Hearts' Dicentra 'King of Hearts'
- Bleeding heart 'Luxuriant' Dicentra 'Luxuriant'
- Dutchman's breeches Dicentra cucullaria
- Fringed bleeding heart Dicentra eximia
- Squirrel corn Dicentra canadensis
In these guides
Every fact on record
- Type
- Perennial
- Size
- 16 in (40 cm) tall, 24 in (60 cm) wide
- Plant
- 18 in (45 cm) apart
- Height class
- Short (12 to 18 in)
- Place in the bed
- Front
- Flowers
- Early May to late June; hanging bells; pink
- Leaves
- Fine texture, herbaceous; blue-green
- Shape
- Mounding, spreading
- Hardy in
- USDA zones 4 to 8
- Light
- Part shade, shade
- Soil
- Rich, evenly moist
- Water
- Moderate
- Feeding
- None needed
- Family
- Papaveraceae
Checked against VASCAN (plants of Canada). 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.