‘Ruby Gold’ Bleeding Heart Brings Vivid Color to the Shade Garden

‘Ruby Gold’ is the first gold-leaved cultivar of showy bleeding heart that has flowers of true red. Its warm color combination lights up this perennial's preferred position, the shade. Sturdy growth, long life and heavy flowering add to the appeal of this new dicentra, which adapts well to the garden or a container.

Common name: ‘Ruby Gold’ bleeding heart

Botanical name: Dicentra spectabilis ‘Ruby Gold’

Exposure: Part to full shade.

Flowers: Occurring in late spring to early summer, the blossoms retain the expected "bleeding hearts" shape and dangling position, but in a brilliant shade of red with a touch of orange. The flowers are large and plentiful, adding to the overall wow factor of this plant when it blooms.

Foliage: Lobed, maple-like leaves emerge with a warm golden-orange hue in spring. Their color complements the red flowers, and then the leaves mature to golden green.

Habit: A vigorous grower, 'Ruby Gold' bleeding heart reaches about two feet tall and three feet wide. The stems are upright and sturdy. This is a long-lived herbaceous perennial that will die back in the fall and grow anew in the spring. 

Origin: The cultivar 'Ruby Gold' was introduced to the market by Terra Nova Nurseries in 2022. While other gold-leaved bleeding hearts have been found as mutations, this cultivar was purposefully bred for its color.

How to grow it: Site in part shade or full shade, in evenly moist, well-drained, fertile soil. Provide supplemental water in dry times. USDA Zones 4–8.

Image courtesy of Terra Nova Nurseries, Inc.