Friday, April 3, 2009

Sanguinaria canadensis

One of the joys of spring for me is when the Bloodroot, Sanguinaria canadensis, first makes its appearance. One day, out of the blue, they will suddently appear . . .

and by the next day, they will be in full bloom. They are not long lasting and both flowers and leaves will be gone before you know it, but they are just so cheery. When I lived in Berks County, Pennsylvania, there was a bank across the road from our farm where there was a patch of Bloodroot at least 50 feet long and about 8 feet wide. I've never seen another like it. Ours spreads a bit, and has seeded a new clump some distance away, but that patch must have been there for quite a long time. Wish I had taken a picture of it.


The last one, not a good photo, is Sanguinaria canadensis multiplex, the double form. I'm going to have to re-do this picture, but included since this was the day I was writing about Bloodroots. It comes up a bit later and the flowers seem even more fragile. Maybe it's just because they make such a pile of petals when they drop.

I see both forms for sale in catalogs, though some years the double one seems to be in short supply. Both like dappled shade in woodsy soil. Just remember where they are so you don't plant something else in the same spot later in the season when the Bloodroots have gone dormant for the year.
Jane



4 comments:

CanadianGardenJoy said...

They are gorgeous little beauties !
Now if they didn't all but disappear when summer comes .. BIG sigh ! LOL

Hoot Owl Hollow Nursery said...

I too hate to see them go, but in my somewhat well planned garden, something else will come up in the spot for summer. For the single flowered ones a hosta (Pineapple Upsidedown Cake) will take its place and the double, which is at the base of a Japanese Maple, isn't missed all that much once the maple leafs out.
Jane

Phoenix C. said...

I've just found your blog - what a wonderful name for your nursery! Your plant descriptions are really interesting and informative.

Hoot Owl Hollow Nursery said...

I wish I could take credit for the name of the nursery, but the 'hollow' has had than name for at least a hundred years. The one that runs perpendicular to it is Hungry Hollow, named during a particularly bad dry spell when farming was less than successful.