Can you grow a bleeding heart plant in Florida? These flowers are extra beautiful, with their petals looking like hearts dropping a white bulb. But for them to grow into an entire vine, they have some requirements.
Bleeding hearts can grow in Florida just fine because they thrive in humid conditions. Florida’s weather is generally good for them to grow, but they may only bloom in the spring and summer. As long as you fulfill their living requirements, they should keep growing.
If you want to learn how to plant your bleeding hearts in Florida, follow this article for a complete care guide!
Can You Grow a Bleeding Heart Plant in Florida?
There’s no reason why bleeding hearts can’t grow in Florida. The state is known for its humid weather, hot in the summer and cold in the winter. The temperature rarely goes above 90 F or below 40 F. Bleeding hearts thrive in degrees between 55 F and 75 F, making Florida suitable for them to live, especially in the spring and summer.
Bleeding hearts in North Florida will grow slower than the ones in South Florida, but both will grow alike. However, the ones in North Florida may die when the weather gets frosty. They can’t handle freezing weather, but they’ll regrow in the spring.
What Do Bleeding Hearts Need to Survive?
For bleeding hearts to survive in Florida or anywhere, they need their essential requirements. Here’s a quick roundup.
Partial Shade
Bleeding hearts are shade-loving plants. They thrive under partial shade, so make sure to place them somewhere with dampened light. Don’t expose them to direct sunlight, or the leaves may curl and turn yellow near the edges.
Well-Draining Soil
Whether you’re planting your bleeding hearts in a pot or outside, you need to provide well-draining soil that has plenty of organic matter.
If you’re buying the soil yourself, you can get a formula that’s rich in humus.
Bear in mind that the roots will rot if the soil stays soggy, so good drainage is critical for the plant to live.
Plenty Water
In normal conditions, bleeding hearts need water only once weekly. However, if they’re grown inside or in a pot, they’ll dry out faster. So, you’ll need to increase the frequency to twice or thrice each week, depending on the humidity.
To test the plant for watering, dip your fingers in the soil. The top inches should be slightly damp, so if they’re dry, it’s your cue to water the flower.
Moderate Temperature
For bleeding hearts to grow healthily, they need a temperature around 55–75 F. if the temperature is lower than that, you’ll see signs of stress on the plant.
The humidity should also be high or moderate; dry weather causes the flowers to stop blooming.
How to Plant Bleeding Hearts in Florida
If you want to fill your flower bed with bleeding hearts, follow these steps. That way, you can see some colorful flowers on your lawn next spring.
Choose a Location
Firstly, you have to choose a suitable place for bleeding hearts. These flowers thrive under partial shade, so keep them out of the sunlight. Choose well-drained soil because their roots will rot if the soil is soggy. To improve the drainage of your soil, you can add a layer of mulch.
Clean the Soil
After choosing the location, make sure to clean the soil before planting your bleeding hearts. Remove all the weeds and organic debris, then start raking the flower bed. If you’re going to use a pesticide to clean the soil, now would be a good time to use it.
However, you’ll want to make sure that it’s safe for bleeding hearts beforehand and that it doesn’t leave a long-term effect on the soil.
Prepare the Planting Soil
Before planting the bleeding hearts, you’ll want to treat the soil first. Add compost to improve its drainage, especially if it’s sandy. Sandy soil is common in Florida, so you’ll inevitably need to add some organic nutrients.
Bleeding hearts need organic-rich soil to survive, so the organic nutrients should be around eight inches deep into the ground.
Next, dig a place for the bleeding hearts. The hole should be deep enough for the roots and wider than necessary to give the roots room to grow.
Plant the Bleeding Hearts
After you prepare the hole, place the roots inside carefully, then cover the hole with soil. Pat the soil down gently to level the surface.
If you want the bleeding hearts to grow into a vine, install a vine stake around 5–7 inches behind the roots you just planted. The branch should be around 10 inches high, and make sure to dig it deep into the soil so that it stays stable.
Water the Roots
After planting the roots and installing the stake, water the seeds, making sure to saturate them for establishing them in the soil. Start watering the plant once a week, and make sure the soil doesn’t completely dry between watering. It should dry slightly but not drought-dry. Check it for a couple of weeks to make sure the soil is well-draining and suitable for the plant.
If your area is dry, you’ll need to water the plant more than once weekly, maybe twice or thrice, until you manage to establish a healthy routine.
Prune the Bleeding Hearts
The last step in planting the bleeding hearts is pruning them to give them a neat look. If you don’t want them to grow into a vine, prune them so that they branch out.
If the weather is cold, cover the bleeding hearts to protect them, and make sure to give them enough water to compensate for the dry weather.
How to Plant Bleeding Hearts in Containers
If you want to plant bleeding hearts in containers, the process will be a bit different from planting them in the ground. In containers, you can choose the soil yourself, so you can ensure the plant gets all its needs.
Generally, when you plant bleeding hearts in containers, you can plant them anywhere, so it doesn’t matter whether you’re in Florida or some other state. If you can provide enough water and well-draining soil, the plant will grow.
Here are detailed steps for planting bleeding hearts in a pot or a container.
Add the Soil
Since you’re already in this section, we’ll assume you already have the containers. After you buy them, it’s time to fill them with soil.
Bleeding hearts need organic-rich soil with good drainage. When choosing the container, it’s essential to get ones with drain holes, or the roots will eventually rot.
Plant the Flowers
When adding the soil, leave a hole in the center that fits the whole root ball of your plant. Next, put the plant gently and surround it with soil tightly. Level the surface around the plant, then give it its first watering.
When watering bleeding hearts for the first time, make sure the water drains to the bottom. You’ll need to repeat the watering three to four times a week since the soil in pots dries out faster than ground soil.
To know when you should water the flowers, dip your fingers in the top inches of the soil. If they’re dry, you need to water them.
Choose a Location
Whether you’re planting your bleeding hearts in a hanging basket or a regular container, you’ll need to choose a suitable place. These plants need dampened light and partial shade, so that’s one thing to consider.
When the winter comes around, put the container in a warm room, then take it out again when spring starts.
The flowers only bloom in the spring, so you’ll rarely see any plant activity in the winter.
Closing Thoughts: Growing Bleeding Heart Plant in Florida
Bleeding hearts can regularly grow in Florida, as long as you provide them with their essential needs. They need well-draining soil, high humidity, and partial shade to thrive. If you provide those, you can plant bleeding hearts anywhere.
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