The first garden I can remember belonged to my grandfather. He was fond of roses, and his hybrid tea roses showed off in their own special display beds set out across the back of the yard in full view. Funnily enough, I don’t remember the rose blooms themselves. I remember the plants neatly trimmed and mulched, tucked into their beds for the winter, a tribute to my grandfather’s affection for his favorites. They weren’t my favorites, though. The perennials that I remember all these years later were relegated to the border that edged the two sides of the yard. One that was always special to me was the bleeding heart.
I have always had bleeding heart represented in my garden, and am pleased that the Willow House garden had a number of lovely, big plants. Although its graceful, arching branches of charming, heart-shaped flowers give bleeding heart a tender appearance, it is sturdy and easy to grow. If you’ve ever tried to move a bleeding heart, you’ll know that an established bush has a tap root that goes halfway to China.
In addition to the pink Old-fashioned Bleeding Heart (Dicentra spectabilis), there is a white form, “Alba“, that is also very pretty, and good for brightening a shady corner. It is a bit more elegant and sophisticated, perhaps, than the pink.
Fern-leaf bleeding heart (Dicentra formosa) is a dwarf version that is good for smaller spaces. It’s under a foot tall, and lacks the long, arching branches of its taller relative, but has attractive flowers and eye-catching foliage.
For me, though, ferny leaves or white flowers are just a diversion. I still like the old-fashioned pink-flowered plants best.
Willow House Chronicles 
AH, now, that’s the plant I remember from my great-grandmother’s gardens: bleeding hearts. She had some wonderful specimens (to my child’s memory they were huge). I put some in my gardens a few years ago, and every year I can’t wait for them to blossom.
Beautiful pics. The old fashioned bleeding heart is one of my favorite plants. Glad you wrote about it as I am trying to revitalize a small patch that I inherited when I moved here. It has filtered sunlight and I just know that a pink bleeding heart plant would love it. Thanks for writing this post, it was a great reminder of of a wonderful plant — I’ll be out this weekend at the nursery looking for one — barbara
Before your garden started shifting toward daylilies, growing up it was the big bleeding heart bushes that I most associated with it. Them, the burning bush by the front door, the hollyhock that attacked you when you went to get water, the sprays of spring forget-me-not, and the peony by the front corner. And then there were other plants in there that filled in the gaps. I’ve also always liked bleeding hearts, the traditional types. The Dutchman’s Breeches of our forests are in the same genus and they’re among my favourite of our spring wildflowers.
Hi Ellen. I look forward to the bleeding heart blooms too. It sounds like you have a special garden of memory too.
Barbara, filtered sunlight sounds like a perfect spot for a bleeding heart. Good luck with your nursery shopping!
Seab, a nice remembrance of the old garden. I miss thoses spots too.
Bleeding Heart — I wonder how that would look in the front bed, which gets morning light and afternoon shade? There’s a gap in one corner…I’ll consult with the boss. š
That sounds like a nice spot for a bleeding heart (if the boss approves!)
[…] I wrote about bleeding heart last May in an entry titled “Old Fashioned“. […]