Bergenia
Pigsqueak
You can experience how this no-trouble rhizomatous ground cover earned its common name if, following a rain, you rub a leaf between your fingers—but it is Bergenia’s fine firm foliage mass and waxy Saxifraga-like flowers that justify its presence in the garden. With bold rounded outlines, the great, glossy, and nearly evergreen, rich green leaves are a handsome backdrop for dense heads of delightful spring blooms that rise above the cabbage-looking rosette on stalwart red-tinted stems. In winter, leaves become tinged with burgundy and are most welcome in holiday arrangements. Bergenia endures neglect, poor soil and some drought, but performs best in part shade.
A 1972 Eric Smith hybrid raised at Britain’s Hadspen House, this rarely offered Bergenia emphasizes arresting contrast. Enhanced by rose-blushed centers, flamboyant red calyces and hefty burgundy-hued stalks, the massive, densely set flower heads initially develop a soft pink coloration, which dramatically matures to white above thick deep green leaves. The tailored evergreen clump can be planted in drifts as an easily grown ground cover, broadcasting bold lustrous texture plus warm coppery red winter highlights.
Blooms April–May
Size: 16" high x 18" wide.
Hardy to zone 3.
Bergenia ‘Bressingham Ruby’ (P-1248)
Each $12.25
Amidst a compact base of lustrous greenery, glistening deep rosy-red Hyacinth-like blooms herald spring, and later the foliage transmutes bronzed-wine tints that animate winters’ somber landscape. This gem’s tidy habit is well suited for edging a path or for gracing a container at any time of year. (PP#7,344)
Blooms April–May
Size: 16" high x 18" wide.
Hardy to zone 4.
Bergenia ‘Bressingham White’ (P-1170)
Each $12.25
Esteemed for the subtly blushed white color of its mature blossoms, its amazing floriferous nature, and for its leafy robustness, ‘Bressingham White’ was bred by British horticulturist Alan Bloom. To create an eye-catching contrast of color and texture, combine this Bergenia’s broad leaves with the ferny foliage of Aruncus ‘Guinea Fowl’.
Blooms April–May
Size: 12" – 15" high x 18" wide.
Hardy to zone 4.
Bergenia cordifolia ‘Winterglut’ (P-1912)
Each $12.25
This superb prismatic cultivar claims its name with striking, red-painted winter foliage that chases the chill from a December day and warms a holiday wreath. The substantial slow-spreading rosettes of beefy, heart-style polished leaves launch showy magenta-red flowers perched on steadfast stalks. Vaunting color aplenty, nearly 4-season appeal and an adaptable valiant bearing, ‘Winter Glow’ can be added to the rockery or a border’s front lines.
Blooms April–May
Size: 18" high x 15" wide.
Hardy to zone 4.
Each $12.25
Wildly popular in Europe, this unfaltering AGM recipient is one of the most floriferous Bergenias, delivering long-lasting, richly hued purplish pink flower clusters atop staunch, tall branching green stalks that are dappled with auburn highlights. The broad, rounded wavy green leaves foster a gleaming finish plus impressive frost tolerance and show-stopping coppery-beet-red tones for winter. A colorful nearly-evergreen perennial, ‘Eroica’ can garnish borders, shrub plantings, stairways and rock gardens, as well as bouquets and holiday greenery.
Blooms April–May
Size: 12" – 18" high x 18" wide.
Hardy to zone 4.
Big varnished rosettes of firm, extralarge rounded evergreen foliage beam purplish bronze colors that indeed work magic on a bleak winter landscape. A verdurous foil the rest of the year, dark green leaves reach up to a foot long and 9 in. across, while supporting dense rosy-pink flower clusters, defined by red centers, white stamens and open starry faces on stout wine-hued stems. Bedazzled with jewel tones and texture galore, this hybrid Bergenia crafts an exceptional, easy-care ground cover for moist poorly drained banks, streamsides or borders.
Blooms April–May
Size: 16" high x 18" wide.
Hardy to zone 3.
Bergenia ‘Pink Dragonfly’ (P-1865)
Each $12.25
Though this cultivar is more diminutive than our other Bergenia selections, its year-round merit is huge. Narrow jade-green leaves compile a gleaming evergreen base that launches lovely clusters of bright pink flowers, looking a bit like cherry blossoms, on thick burgundy-tinted stems. Introduced by German-born Anne Eskuche, ‘Pink Dragonfly’s enticements extend far beyond the perfectly proportioned blooms as unique plum-red shades morph the foliage into a colorful winter spectacle.
Blooms April–May
Size: 12" – 15" high x 12" – 18" wide.
Hardy to zone 4.
Highly regarded by British plantswoman Beth Chatto for their lovely presentation, the salmon-tinged rosy pink Hyacinth-like floral bells ring in spring with open flared mouths above a tight-knit smaller-sized foundation of gleaming spoon-shaped foliage. ‘Rosi Klose’s profuse uniquely hued blooms and verdant trouble-free disposition can enhance the rockery, a stone wall or pond’s edge.
Blooms April–May
Size: 12" high x 15" wide.
Hardy to zone 4.
Granted a well-earned 2009 AGM, ‘Wintermärchen’s winning year-round habit affords splendid, late-appearing pink-tinged white flowers, as well as prismatic cold weather charm. The pendulous bee-friendly blooms sojourn atop staunch reddish stems and a lush ultracold-hardy foundation. Smaller than most Bergenias, the polished green leaves grow in a distinctive vertical fashion, developing a somewhat elongated shape and later proving the namesake, which translates to ‘Winter Fairy Tale’, when warm scarlet and rubescent shades set them ablaze. Anemone leveillei and Geranium ‘Claudine Dupont’ make amiable companions.
Blooms late April–early June
Size: 12" – 15" high x 18" wide.
Hardy to zone 4.
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