California Gardens - The Year Round Gardening Site

Dicentra formosa * Pacific Bleeding Heart

Dicentra formosa is a California Native that prefers shaded moist slopes below 7000 feet, plants can be found in the Sierra foothills and the northern Coast Ranges. The green ferny foliage of Dicentra formosa might be enough reason to plant this plant by itself. But the pink flowers are truly exotic looking. This patch was 20 feet across. This patch of Pacific Bleeding Heart was found at 3,000 feet elevation on a North facing slope in the Foothills of the Sierra Nevadas in the Gold Country. Dicentra formosa plants are a foot to 18" tall. There are a number of cultivars of Dicentra formosa on the market.

Dicentra formosa, Bleeding Heart

Flowers and foliage of Dicentra formosa - Pacific Bleeding Heart.