General Culture:
Best grown in organically rich, humusy, medium moisture, well-drained soils in part shade. Plants may be grown in full sun in the north. If grown in full sun, consistent moisture is important. Scorch and general foliage decline tend to occur if soils are allowed to dry out. In St. Louis, best foliage color typically occurs in part shade locations (particularly in the heat of the afternoon). Notwithstanding the foregoing, ‘Encore’ is considered to be more tolerant of hot and humid summers than most other heucheras, in large part because it has H. villosa (SE US native) in its parentage. Remove stems of faded flowers to encourage additional bloom. Some gardeners prefer to remove flower stems before flowering if plants are being grown as ground covers for their foliage texture and color. Foliage is essentially evergreen in warm winter climates. In cold winter climates such as St. Louis, the amount of retained foliage color depends in large part upon the severity of the temperatures. A winter mulch applied after the ground freezes will help prevent root heaving. Divide clumps in spring every 3-4 years.
Noteworthy Characteristics:
‘Encore’ is a vigorous, clump-forming, compact coral bells cultivar. Early spring leaves emerge deep rose-purple with darker veins and a light silver frosting. Leaf undersides are reddish purple. Leaves turn lighter rose with a more pronounced silvery sheen as they mature. The lobed, rounded leaves (5-7 lobes per leaf) form a basal mound to 8-12” tall and as wide. Tiny white flowers appear in spires in summer (later than most heucheras) on slender stems rising above the foliage mound to 15-18” tall. U. S. Plant Patent PP19,578 was issued on December 16, 2008.
Problems:
No serious insect or disease problems. Frost heaving of roots may occur when winter temperatures fluctuate widely.
Uses:
Mass as a ground cover or group. Rock gardens, borders and open woodland gardens. Effective as an edger along paths or walkways. Containers.
© Missouri Botanical
Garden, 2001-2010
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