How to Plant Fernleaf Bleeding Hearts

The fernleaf bleeding heart, or dicentra eximia, features locket-shaped pink, red or white flowers suspended over lush, fern-like leaves. While this plant does well on its own with little care or maintenance needed once established, it’s important to give bleeding hearts a healthy start in your garden by planting them well in the spring or fall. This perennial is suited to USDA zones 3 to 9 and will bloom in the spring until the first frost. Fernleaf bleeding hearts do not die back in the summer as other varieties do.

Difficulty:

Moderately Easy

Instructions

things you’ll need:

• Shovel
• Well-rotted compost
• Garden soil, if desired
• Mulch, bark or leaves

1. Choose a site for you bleeding hearts in shade to partial shade, with little to no exposure to full sun. If sun is unavoidable, place the plant where the only sun it receives is in the morning.
2. Dig a hole twice the size of the pot your plant is in. Fill the bottom third of the hole with compost or garden soil.
3. Slip the pot away from the roots of your bleeding heart gently to keep the root ball intact. Place the plant centered in the prepared hole and add more compost to the hole.
4. Fill in the open areas of the hole around the roots with a mix of equal parts compost and existing soil. Firm the soil around the plant with your hands so the plant will not tip over.
5. Spread an inch of compost around the base of the plant. Add two inches of bark or leaf mulch over the compost.
6. Water the plant well to moisten the soil. Continue to water once a week to keep the plant thriving. If planting in the spring, water until hot weather forces the plant to die back. If planting in the fall, water until cooler temperatures come and the leaves begin to yellow.
7. Pull back the mulch layer the following spring after the last frost. Spread two cups of compost around the base of the plant and cover this over with two inches of mulch once again. Only occasional watering should be needed from now on when rainfall isn’t sufficient.

Tips & Warnings

• Fernleaf bleeding hearts pair well with other shade-loving plants such as hosta, rhododendron and hydrangeas.

• Propagate the fernleaf bleeding heart by division every five years, planting new divisions so the roots are set three inches deep.