Dancing petite shade garden lovelies in pretty periwinkle! Darling, light periwinkle-blue flowers cover this low, mounded groundcover perennial! The Twinkle Toes Lungwort (Pulmonaria ‘Twinkle Toes’) is a brilliant perennial, calling bees (especially Bumblebees!) and Hummingbirds to shady gardens! The light blue blooms age to violets and pinks throughout the mid to late spring!
Also starting in mid-spring, the unique foliage is dark green leaves with striking silvery speckles, making these unusual and underutilized flowering ornamentals especially lovely even when not in bloom! These space-saving plants bring high impact but remain compact at 12-14 inches tall when in bloom, and spreading to 16-18 inches wide.
Also known as Bethlehem Sage, Lungworts spread gently and are lovely throughout the shade garden in USDA growing zones 3 to 9! They are cold and heat-tolerant, resistant to deer pressure, and politely spread by underground rhizomes, filling garden beds and borders with their curious speckled beauty!
Planting and Application:
The dainty stems and nodding circlets of color-changing blooms make these adaptable perennials gorgeous cut flowers! Twinkle Toes dances among Perennial and Pollinator gardens and acts as a tidy border plant for Cottage gardens, potager plantings (Lungworts have been used since the 16th century for their medicinal properties!), and the woodland’s edge. Not minding the shade from tree canopies or larger shrubs spreading branches, these perennials act as showy facer plants all growing season!
Also adorable throughout moist Rock gardens and shade gardens without worry the deer and rabbits will eat them up! The flowers and silvery foliage mix harmoniously with Japanese Painted Ferns, Lilafee Barrenwort, Spellbound Coral Bells, Krossa Regal Hosta, and other shade perennials!
Sized perfectly for containers, balconies, and covered patios, your shaded porches and seating areas gain gorgeous filler! Even garden beds appreciate the spreading nature of these woodland plants! Filling bare ground and mingling happily among Roses, around larger shrubs, and throughout a shaded pathway as edging!
- Circular Clusters of Tubular Periwinkle-Blue Blooms
- Upright Mounded Habit – Politely Spreads
- Dark-Green Foliage With Silver Speckles
- Mid-Spring Blooms for Pollinators & Hummingbirds
- Containers, Woodlands, Edging & Shade-Garden Lovelies
Tips for Care:
Preferring full shade, especially in the hotter growing zones and drier conditions, these underused herbaceous perennials tolerate partial sun and moist soil in cooler climates. Doing best in rich, moist, humus soils, even tolerating fertile alkaline sites, any well-drained soil with adequate moisture keeps them happy! Apply a 3-4 inch thick layer of mulch around their roots to keep them cool and retain moisture.
Deadhead after the flowers are finished blooming, removing the flowering stems completely to maintain a tidy mound and the plant transforms itself into an incredible foliage plant with silvery spotted leaves! Otherwise, Lungwort are low-maintenance gems! In the fall, after the foliage has died down after frost, prune the entire plant to the ground and remove all stems, leaves, and other debris to prevent mildews, slugs, and snails from overwintering. To prevent over-crowding, divide your clumps every 3-5 years in the autumn as well.
- Full Shade to Partial Sun/Shade
- Moist Rich Well-Drained Soil
- Appreciates Regular Water & Mulched Beds
- Deadhead After Bloom & Prune Late Fall
- Deer Seldom Bother Them
- Mildew Resistant Foliage
