When I got up this morning I didn’t know I’d be writing about how to deal with leggy heucheras. Then again I didn’t know I had a leggy heuchera to deal with! It was only when I wandered around my patio with my usual morning cuppa and took a proper look at my dear old friend, my Heuchera Fire Chief, that I realised, to my horror, that not only did he have legs as long as Peter Crouch, but he was almost dead!
How Did it Come to This?
Fire Chief has been an absolute stunner on my patio for years. But he’s been so easy and reliable, that I’ve not looked at him properly for a while. My showier, more demanding patio plants have sidetracked me – the clematis which needed pruning, my temperamental camellias with their would-they wouldn’t-they open buds, my hostas (and their resident slugs), my pheasant-pecked irises and frost-shocked salvias.
As a result I hadn’t noticed how incredibly leggy old Fire Chief was getting. Added to this, over Winter he became very waterlogged – and heucheras hate having wet feet. Again, something I didn’t notice. I feel so guilty about it, I can’t tell you. After all, our plants are so reliant on us, especially those in pots!
Anyway, this combination of factors means that when I at long last looked at him, there was no life at the base of the plant. There was still a bit of growth towards the very top. So if I acted, I might be able to salvage something of him. A quick survey of other heucheras in my garden told me that he wasn’t alone. I had a few leggy heucheras in my shady woodland style border. My heuchera called Root Beer, another red leaved beauty growing in a basket on my patio, was also not looking good.
So, I thought now was the perfect moment to tackle the situation and deal with all my leggy heucheras. And although it doesn’t sound like the most thrilling of tasks, it’s actually a very satisfying thing to do. You get your plants looking shipshape again, and the good news is you can increase your stock of the plants while you’re at it!
How to Deal with Leggy Heucheras
Heucheras are meant to grow as low, flattened mounds. But if left to do their own thing, after a few years they become leggy. The legs become longer and longer, with no growth along their length, just everything at the ends of the legs. With all the growth and weight at the top of the plant, the plant starts splaying open. The plant loses its lovely dome shape and doesn’t look very attractive. So what’s the answer?
The Steps
- Remove the leggy sections by cutting down to the base of each
- Ideally cut just above shoots or leaves on the original plant so it can continue to grow but at a much better, lower level
- The removed legs, can then be used as the basis of cuttings.
- Simply remove all the dead leaves and other debris you can do this by hand
- Trim off larger leaves with secateurs
- Leave some of the young leaves on the leg
- You don’t want to leave too many leaves as obviously there is no root system yet. You don’t want the cutting to have to support too much life until the roots have formed
- Plant up each of these cuttings in some free draining potting compost (heucheras don’t like sitting in water)
- Water them
- Leave in a cool spot to minimise loss of water due to expiration
- If you do this in the Spring as it starts to warm, they should form roots within about 6 weeks
- Voila – oodles of extra heucheras
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Let’s Hear it for Heuchera
So are they worth all this fuss and bother? I’ll say so. There are over 200 different heuchera varieties and they’re wonderfully versatile plants. They can cope with acid or alkaline soil, they’re largely evergreen and they’re easy to grow. Heucheras are known for their leaves which come in so many colours, some are variegated and some ruffled. They also produce flowers over quite a long period. While the flowers are quite small, they’re striking and dance on wirey stems. I love them.
Perfect in Pots
Heucheras are a brilliant container plant for semi-shaded situations.
Indeed I planted three in my stone trough last week. Two plum coloured ones called Heuchera Wildberry and Heuchera Silver Scrolls, together with the acid green coloured Heuchera Lime Marmalade
Brilliant in Borders
They also look wonderful in borders too. I use them quite conventionally in my semi-shaded woodland style border. Here I have the Heuchera Lime Marmalade along the front edge of the border. I think it works well at this time of year with the acid yellow of the daffodils, the buttery yellow primroses, the limey euphorbia in the background and the erythronium called Pagoda which you can see in the foreground just coming into flower. Then when other plants kick in later on, such as my hostas, ferns and alliums, the heucheras are still going strong.
But you can also create real drama with heucheras. For instance, how striking is this combination of foxglove and heuchera, it gives incredible punch to this shady border!
And you can use some heucheras in your sunnier borders too; those in the darker brown and plum shades don’t mind being planted in some sun.
Indeed a brilliant rule of thumb I heard recently was that if you see a heuchera with a pale leaf, think of them like fair skinned people, they prefer the shade. All the other heucheras can cope with either sun or shade.
Have a Play!
I also think there’s scope to be a little experimental with them. For instance, I think the heuchera below would combine really well with an orange rose. Now there’s a thought for my ‘hot’ corner.
And what’s not to love about these gloriously clashing pansies and heucheras?
Leggy Heucheras – The Good News…and the Bad!
As I think you can tell, I am hooked on heucheras. And the good news is that after an hour or so of heuchera handywork, dealing with my leggy heucheras, I now have oodles of potential cuttings.
I know that not all of them will take, but even if just a few do, that will be extra plants for me.
Now for the bad news. As you can see below, once I’d taken the legs as cuttings, there was absolutely nothing left of dear old Fire Chief. So his soggy rootball is heading for that great compost heap in the sky (actually it’s at the bottom of the garden). But, if I’m honest, he was at least five years old, so he’d had a good innings.
And who knows, with a bit of luck, one of the cuttings taken today from my beloved old Fire Chief will be successful, and therefore the dear old boy will live on. Let’s hope so.
Very interesting article will be checking my plants later
Ah thank you Jean
I too love Heucheras but as you know my bed spaces are limited. I’ve always grown them in pots but find them very vulnerable to Vine Weevil. Could this be because they are too wet in the pots?? You’ve given me something to think about. Last year I didn’t have any in my pots but after reading today I may give it another go this year. Xdeni
I’ve usually managed to avoid the dreaded Vine Weevil. I think getting too wet, and thus distressing the plant, probably would make it vulnerable to pests etc.. so yes that maybe has been your problem in the past. You have such a lovely garden Deni, but I feel there’s always room for another heuchera in ones life! So do give one another go..