Lamprocapnos spectabilis
| Lamprocapnos spectabilis | |
|---|---|
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| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| (unranked): | Angiosperms |
| (unranked): | Eudicots |
| Order: | Ranunculales |
| Family: | Papaveraceae |
| Genus: | Lamprocapnos |
| Species: | L. spectabilis |
| Binomial name | |
| Lamprocapnos spectabilis (L.) Fukuhara |
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| Synonyms [1] | |
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Dicentra spectabilis (L.) Lem. |
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Lamprocapnos spectabilis (formerly Dicentra spectabilis); also known as old-fashioned bleeding-heart, Venus's car, Lady in a bath, Dutchman's trousers, or Lyre-flower is a rhizomatous perennial plant native to eastern Asia from Siberia south to Japan. It is a popular ornamental plant for flower gardens in temperate climates, and is also used in floristry as a cut flower for Valentine's Day. It usually has red heart-shaped flowers with white tips which droop from arching flower stems in late spring and early summer. White-flowered forms are also cultivated.
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Description [edit]
Compound leaves with leaflets in threes grow on fleshy green to pink stems up to 3 feet (0.9 m).
Flowers are heart-shaped and 1–2 inches (3–5 cm) long, with pink outer petals and white inner petals, hanging in a horizontal raceme. They bloom from late spring to early summer.
Seeds with whitish elaiosomes are borne in long pods.
The plant, a spring ephemeral, often goes dormant, dying back to its fibrous roots in summer after blooming.
History [edit]
First plants specimens were introduced into England in the 1840s from Japan by the Scottish botanist and plant hunter Robert Fortune.[2]
Cultivation [edit]
In a moist and cool climate, it will grow in full sun, but in warmer and drier climates it requires some shade.
Aphids, slugs and snails sometimes feed on the leaves. Clumps of dicentra remain compact for many years and do not need dividing. They have brittle roots which are easily damaged when disturbed. Root cuttings should be taken in spring.[3]
Seeds must be sown while fresh. Division should be done in the late fall or early spring.
Contact with the plant can cause skin irritation in some people from isoquinoline-like alkaloids.[4][5]
Cultivars [edit]
Several cultivars have been selected. 'Alba' has white flowers, and 'Gold Heart', introduced from Hadspen Garden, Castle Cary, Somerset, England in 1997,[2] has yellow leaves.
The species[6] and the cultivar 'Alba'[7] have gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit.
Gallery [edit]
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Lamprocapnos spectabilis
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Close up showing form of the leaves
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White flowering variety
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Lamprocapnos spectabilis 'Alba'
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Lamprocapnos spectabilis 'Gold Heart'
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seed pods
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half of pod and seeds with elaiosomes
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Flower on the left has been cut open to reveal pistil and stamens.
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References [edit]
- ^ Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN)
- ^ a b University of Vermont: Perry's Perennial Pages
- ^ "Bleeding heart". Plant Finder. BBC. 2012. Retrieved 27 April 2012.
- ^ University of Vermont Department of Plant and Soil Science
- ^ Leikin, Edited by Jerrold B.; Paloucek, Frank P. (2007), Poisoning and toxicology handbook, Boca Raton, Fla: CRC, p. 886, ISBN 1-4200-4479-6
- ^ http://apps.rhs.org.uk/plantselector/plant?plantid=652
- ^ http://apps.rhs.org.uk/plantselector/plant?plantid=653
External links [edit]
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Lamprocapnos spectabilis |
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Wikispecies has information related to: Lamprocapnos spectabilis |
