Autumn Bride Coral Bells

Autumn Bride is the coral bells grown for the flowers rather than the foliage. Most heuchera on the market are bred for colored leaves and bloom thinly, but Heuchera villosa 'Autumn Bride' sends up tall spikes of creamy white flowers in late summer and fall, at a point in the season when shade beds have nothing left. It grows 18 to 24 inches tall and wide in part shade to full shade, hardy from Zone 3 through Zone 8, and reaches full size by the second or third season.

Bloom starts in August and runs into October, well after the shade perennials around it have finished. The flower spikes stand a foot above the foliage and hold well for cutting.

The leaves are large, soft, and light green, with a felted texture that catches water, and they form a broad mound that holds up through summer heat and humidity better than the fancy-leaved hybrids. Heuchera villosa is the southeastern species, and heat tolerance is the trait it brings.

Coral bells want soil with organic matter and good drainage, and they resent sitting wet in winter. The crown tends to lift out of the ground over a few years, so resetting it deeper every third spring keeps the plant solid. Deer usually leave it alone.