until spring. If this is the route taken,
early spring pruning will be necessary
to clean up any damaged foliage
before the early flowering begins.
other maintenance Plants do
best with rich, high-organic, moist soil.
Avoiding dry conditions can reduce
the incidence of powdery mildew and
leaf scorch. Plants do not need
division for many years, and it’s only
necessary if the clump becomes
crowded. Divide in late summer or
early autumn, and keep roots moist, so
plants have a chance to establish
before winter.
related plantS Pulmonaria
saccharata cultivars and hybrids with P.
saccharata parentage include striking
plants with all-silver or nearly
all-silver leaves like ‘Majeste’ and
‘Samouri’. ‘Mrs. Moon’ is an older
selection with the typical spotted
leaves; it may seed itself prolifically
under wet and cool conditions.
‘Pierre’s Pure Pink’ has spotted foliage
and no blue coloration in the blossoms.
‘Leopard’ has attractive mottled foliage
with white splashes.
Pulmonaria longifolia,
narrow-leaved lungwort, has also
spawned many cultivars and hybrids,
such as the classic ‘Bertram Anderson’
with pink-to-blue flowers over spotted
leaves. ‘Raspberry Splash’ has an
upright growth habit. ‘Roy Davidson’
has flowers that mature to sky blue
and foliage that seems to hold up well
over the winter in most cases. ‘Trevi
Fountain’ has rich blue flowers and
mounds of lush spotted foliage.
Pulmonaria officinalis selections are
few, because it is susceptible to mildew.
‘Sissinghurst White’ is a snow-white
cultivar.
Pulmonaria rubra, red lungwort, is
represented by selections like ‘David
Ward’ and ‘Redstart’. It is among the
first of the lungworts to bloom (in
coral-red with no blue) and has plain
green foliage that is evergreen in
protected locations. Red lungwort
performs poorly in hot climates. Pulmonaria saccharata ‘Leopard’