Coralbells Primo ‘Black Pearl’
* Common name: Coralbells Primo ‘Black Pearl’
Credit: Proven Winners
* Botanical name: Heuchera villosa Primo ‘Black Pearl’
* What it is: This recent Proven Winners hybrid – developed as a hybrid of a native perennial flower from the Southeast U.S. – is striking for its large, glossy, jet-black leaves with the ruffled edges. It gets small pinkish-white flowers at the top of wiry stems in early summer, but it’s the foliage that’s the season-long star here.
* Size: Foliage grows about a foot tall, and the flower stems reach up to about 20 inches. Plants spread 2 feet across.
* Where to use: ‘Black Pearl’ is versatile to grow in everything from full sun to full shade, but its best leaf color is in a site that gets morning sun and afternoon shade. Makes a great accent plant in a container, adds dark contrast in a perennial garden, and is a good, low-care choice along the front of an eastern house foundation.
* Care: Keep damp the first season, then water usually not needed except in droughts. Scatter balanced organic granular fertilizer over the bed in early spring. Snip off flower stems after bloom. Cut ratty leaves at end of winter but don’t cut into the crowns (the fleshy part just above the ground where the leaves emerge). Tired leaves also can removed in summer to make way for fresh growth in early fall.
* Great partners: Golden sedge or gold-variegated Japanese forest grass is a perfect color and texture partner in a part-shade setting. Pair with gold or lime coleus and golden creeping jenny in a pot. Or use in front of any golden or light-green evergreen in a foundation or border bed.