Coo Coo for Heuchera

Flashback 2010

I am smitten. When a new Heuchera leaf color combination comes out, I feel like a kid turned loose in a toy store — I want to let out a whoop, jump up and down, and clap my hands. Over the years, I have photographed and photographed again, written and rewritten about them, for I am hopelessly hooked. I swear plant breeders know my addiction, and like evil drug dealers, they toss more cultivars into the plant market with a new twist, new variegation, a new color, or a combination of colors. They feed my affliction.

Purple, gold, mahogany, peach, apricot, yellow, fuchsia, black, and every shade of green on the planet are all hues that can be seen in the leaves of coral bells.

Heuchera ‘Monet’

Take Heuchera ‘Monet’; the foliage looks as if an impressionist painter laid down splashes of various hues of green. Likewise, H. ‘Mahogany’ appears with every leaf a different shade of tan, mahogany, and shades in between. Finally, H. ‘Marmalade’ is similar but with warmer hues.

Heuchera ‘Mahogany’

Heuchera ‘Marmalade’

Heuchera ‘TNHEU042’

Many cultivar names are very descriptive; however, Heuchera ‘TNHEU042’ seems like a strange name. Therefore, its registered trade name — Dolce Key Lime Pie™ — would be better as its cultivar name, as it does come in shades of lime, chartreuse and yellow.

Heuchera ‘Midnight Rose’

My favorite of all coral bells is Heuchera ‘Midnight Rose’. It was love at first sight when I first laid eyes on her. Then, all I could do was stare at her lovely, ebony leaves splashed with rose. After that, I had to make her mine. She now resides in my garden, where I visit her daily at her perch on top of a low basalt wall with native gray sedums at her feet. She’s been my favorite now for two years; no other Heuchera has bumped her from the number one position.

I’m keeping my eyes wide open; I know those plant pushers are going to keep trying to find me a new love.

More Heucheras

Heucheras — Plant Gallery & Growing Guide