3 tips for growing Lungwort

What a gift Lungwort is for your yard. It thrives in shady areas so, with its pretty spring flowers and richly-coloured leaves, you can make every nook and cranny of your garden beautiful. These tips will help you grow this stunning plant.

Lungwort, also known as Pulmonaria, does great in shady areas so you have a lot of choice about where to grow it. It’s ideal for growing under trees and shrubs or on the north side of a building.

Even in deep shade, Lungwort grows thick, handsome variegated foliage that blocks out weeds and forms eye-catching ground cover – especially if you mass a group together.
The leaves of Lungwort are slightly hairy and range in length from 15 to 30 centimetres. They can be speckled, streaked or flushed with white or silver. Lungwort is a great addition to a spring bulb bed, complementing the flowers of daffodils, tulips and grape hyacinths while they're in bloom. When the flowers fade, Lungwort’s foliage hides them well.

In the spring, when its leaves are still small, Lungwort produces clusters of pink, violet-blue or white flowers that only last for a few weeks. These are some  of the prettiest:

• 'Mrs. Moon' has pink flowers that turn blue on top of silver-dappled leaves.
• 'Berries and Cream' are bright raspberry flowers capping foliage streaked with cream.
• 'Excalibur' has pinkish red buds and blue flowers, boasting long, metallic silver leaves with green hems.
• 'White Wings' is a long-blooming type with pure white flowers.

Lungwort grows early in the spring so make sure you plant in the autumn. Look for full shade in moist, loose-textured soil. Check out these tips on how to care for your Lungwort:

• Take special care with Lungworts that have predominantly white leaves; these need more shade than those with mostly green leaves.
• If the soil seems infertile, dig in some compost or other organic matter before planting and spread a thin layer of compost over the area early each spring.
• For a dense ground cover, set the plants 30 centimetres apart.
• Always water Lungwort generously and regularly when it's newly planted, and supply water as needed to keep the soil moist.
• Lungwort doesn't fare well in overly dry conditions. When stressed, it wilts.
• Lungwort is prone to powdery mildew, a disfiguring fungal infection, where days are warm and moist and nights are cool. It can also be affected when you grow it in cool, damp sites or areas with poor air circulation.
• New hybrids, such as 'Excalibur', have good resistance to this problem. If mildew does strike, clip off and dispose of any foliage covered with powdery white patches. New leaves will sprout afresh and last through the season.
• Pests don’t bother Lungwort much. Night-feeding slugs and snails will occasionally visit plants growing in deep shade. Set out saucers of beer to lure and drown these pests.
• Deer may nibble Lungworts growing in naturalized gardens. Tuck bars of deodorant soap among plantings to repel them, or apply commercial repellents as directed on the label.

If you’re looking to enhance shady parts of your yard with a striking plant that blooms in spring and offers a mix of greens, whites and golds for the summer, Lungwort fits the bill. These tips will help you grow and care for these stunning plants.