Burnished Bronze Foamy Bells in bloom

Burnished Bronze Foamy Bells in bloom

(Photo courtesy of NetPS Plant Finder)

Description:

Large, glossy purple-bronze leaves form low growing mounds on this easy to grow variety; sprays of light pink flowers emerge in late spring through early summer; an excellent choice for borders, woodland or rock gardens; drought tolerant once established

Ornamental Features

Burnished Bronze Foamy Bells features dainty spikes of shell pink bell-shaped flowers rising above the foliage from mid spring to mid summer. The flowers are excellent for cutting. Its attractive glossy lobed leaves emerge coppery-bronze in spring, turning dark green in color with distinctive coppery-bronze edges and tinges of purple the rest of the year. The black stems can be quite attractive.

Landscape Attributes

Burnished Bronze Foamy Bells is a dense herbaceous evergreen perennial with tall flower stalks held atop a low mound of foliage. Its medium texture blends into the garden, but can always be balanced by a couple of finer or coarser plants for an effective composition.

This is a relatively low maintenance plant, and is best cleaned up in early spring before it resumes active growth for the season. It is a good choice for attracting hummingbirds to your yard. It has no significant negative characteristics.

Burnished Bronze Foamy Bells is recommended for the following landscape applications;

• Mass Planting
• Rock/Alpine Gardens
• Border Edging
• General Garden Use
• Groundcover
• Container Planting

Planting & Growing

Burnished Bronze Foamy Bells will grow to be about 8 inches tall at maturity extending to 18 inches tall with the flowers, with a spread of 14 inches. When grown in masses or used as a bedding plant, individual plants should be spaced approximately 12 inches apart. Its foliage tends to remain low and dense right to the ground. It grows at a medium rate, and under ideal conditions can be expected to live for approximately 10 years. As an evegreen perennial, this plant will typically keep its form and foliage year-round.

This plant does best in partial shade to shade. It prefers to grow in average to moist conditions, and shouldn't be allowed to dry out. It is not particular as to soil type or pH. It is somewhat tolerant of urban pollution. Consider covering it with a thick layer of mulch in winter to protect it in exposed locations or colder microclimates. This particular variety is an interspecific hybrid. It can be propagated by division; however, as a cultivated variety, be aware that it may be subject to certain restrictions or prohibitions on propagation.

Burnished Bronze Foamy Bells is a fine choice for the garden, but it is also a good selection for planting in outdoor pots and containers. It is often used as a 'filler' in the 'spiller-thriller-filler' container combination, providing a mass of flowers and foliage against which the larger thriller plants stand out. Note that when growing plants in outdoor containers and baskets, they may require more frequent waterings than they would in the yard or garden.