Lungwort or Pulmonaria
The Name
The name come from its Latin name. Pulmois Latin for ‘lung’. The spotted leaves were said to resemble lungs so we got Lung – and ‘wort’ is the Saxon word for ‘plant’ so we get Lungwort. (Aren’t you glad you asked?)
How to Grow
This plant grows eight to twelve inches tall and does best in part shade out of the hot noon sun. While it will survive out in the hot sun it does not do very well there and will resent it. Give this plant shade or part shade to keep it happy. It loves a soil that is rich in organic matter with no standing water. The richer the soil, the better the plant will grow. This is not a plant for dry shade.
The white, red, and blue-pink blossoms are fantastic (in my humble opinion) and after a long white winter, they are more than welcome. Put this plant at least twenty-four inches from neighboring plants as it will spread this far in a year or two.
Do Not Heavily Mulch
It does not appreciate a heavy mulch so mulch around it but not over top of it. A thin covering of leaves will not hurt the plant but thick weed-suppressing mulches are not advised. It blooms in the very early spring and will be one of the very first perennials in bloom in the garden.
Propagation
And finally, it is extremely easy to divide this plant in the spring right after it finishes blooming. Or before it starts if you can catch it in time.
Plants to Look For
P.
angustifolia.
This plant does best on slightly acidic soils so adding peat moss in
large quantities is a good idea. It will also tolerate more sunlight
than some other species and it is a candidate for naturalizing in
meadows as long as there is no spring mowing until after flowering is
finished. The leaves are narrower on this species than others and in
many of the varieties, they are unspotted or lack the heavy spotting so
common in other species. Common varieties include
‘Rubra’ with reddish-pink flowers,
‘Azurea’ has flowers of bright blue with a red tint in the bud.
‘Lambrook Silver’ is one of the more highly variegated of this species with good blue flowers
P. longifolia If you are cursed with a heavy clay soil, this species is one you should search out. It does better on clay than any other species.
‘Bertram Anderson’ is the most commonly available variety and the leaves are well spotted with silver and the flowers are a mid-blue color.
P. rubra While this species is said to be semi-evergreen in warmer climates by reference textbooks, it dies to the ground in USDA zone 4 (but happily pops right up again in the spring)
‘Sissinghurst White’ a white blooming plant with good coloring on the leaves.
‘Trevi Fountain’ has extra heavily silver spotted leaves and large cobalt-blue flowers.
P. saccharata.
‘Leopard’ is a narrow leaved form but well spotted with silver markings. The flowers are early spring bloomers in reddish tones
P. x hybrids. And then there are the increasingly large numbers of hybrid Lungwort plants on the market that defy identification as to species (being so genetically mixed up) These are great plants and unless I really need a plant such as P. longifolia to grow on clay, I really don’t care about the species of the plants I grow. Here are some good hybrids to grow:
‘ Beth Chatto’ has heavily spotted leaves and dark blue flowers.
‘Victorian Brooch’ long leaves and silver spotted foliage but gorgeous magenta-coral blooms with a ruby-red calyx. This is one of the longest Lungwort bloomers.
‘Lewis Palmer’ has long thin leaves with good sized silver blotches and a very heavy blooming display of blue-violet flowers on this Lungwort.
If you want to ask a question about Lungwort click here
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