Marianne's Response

adairable88’s Question

I have many different varieties of Coral bells. Most of them are 4 or 5 yrs old and need dividing. The weather here has been haywire, zone 4/5 depending on which guide you pull up. I divided a Caramel and then it started to sprinkle so that’s the only one I did. We then had 4 days of heavy rain straight. it dried out for 2 days at which time I went and made sure the soil around them was compacted. It really needed it. Now we are into 3 or 4 more days of heavy rain. neither plant is looking to well. Do you think they will be alright? and I also have several other ones that need to be divided. Some have already started flowering so those will probably have to wait until next year I think. Is it too late in the year to do the others?

Posted by adairable88 on May 4, 2017

Marianne's Response

No worries, coral bells or heucheras are tough perennials and love to be divided up. You can even cut off the stem of one about an inch from the ground and new leaves will sprout to form a new plant. It is not too late to divide or cut back your coral bells. Spring is the best time of year to do the divisions so keep pulling the plants apart until the weather warms and the soil dries out. You can even divide the plants that are flowering. If the flowering stalks wilt after the transplant just snip them off and the plant will be able to put more energy into new root and leaf production. Keep the soil moist around newly dividing coral bells - that means the rain is actually helping your new divisions. Such a rain spring I just decided to get on my rain gear and dig into my garden anyway. Keep growing, Marianne Binetti

    Search the Ask the Gardening Expert library

    Looking for a quick resolution to your problem? Marianne has answered thousands of gardening questions. One may be similar to yours. Try searching our library to get the answer you need — fast!

    My Topics

    View questions you submitted to Marianne in the past

    VIEW MY QUESTIONS