Coral Bells with their enchanting blooms enhance the beauty of a garden. These perennials thrive best in USDA zones 4 to 9. Gardeners often create healthy and vibrant gardens by planting perfect companion plants with Coral Bells to boost crop yield. However, What to plant with Heuchera is a major question. Choosing companions of these flowers to create a magnificent display in your garden is itself a task.
Various flowers look super attractive with these Heuchera spp. and you can find them worldwide. This article explores 8 perfect companions for Coral Bells, considering features, textures, and colors. So, let’s see which flowers will look best with your coral plants and design a breathtaking garden!
What are the Benefits of Companion Plants
Planting companion plants with coral bells has several benefits. The diversity that companion plants provide to the neighboring plant is necessary to increase yield crops and prevent bugs. There are a lot of benefits, some of them are:
1. Saves The Space
Companion planting allows you to grow more flowers and maximize your garden area. The shorter plants between taller ones, and vining plants are perfect examples of companion planting and a more productive layout. You can save a lot of space by planting plants with similar preferences and coral bells to use that space for any other plant.
2. Add Shade and Shelter to Other Plants
Planting tall and sturdy companions to provide a natural look to your garden will eliminate the need for staking and separate structure building. Vertically friendly plants give climbing support to the low-growing coral bells and provide shade if they require a shady area to grow. Tall companion plants have many benefits, so if you grow them with coral bells, they will provide shade and shelter.
3. Helps The Soil
Planting the different types of plants together provides moist and rich soil to other plants and prevents the plants from soil erosion. Tall companion plants provide shade to the soil to remain wet and well-drained for longer. Shading soil is beneficial for plants that are best suited for drought.
General Information About Coral Bell Plant
Coral Bells are botanically known as Heuchera spp. They vigorously grow in hardiness zones 4 to 9. Rich and moist soil is necessary for the full growth of these plants. The coral is a perennial plant with bell-shaped flowers in various colors. One of the best things about this plant is that its foliage has a different color range from green to golden, rose, lime green, purple, and many more.
Coral bell plants are native to America and need full to partial sunlight to grow efficiently. They prefer to be in shady areas but can tolerate total sun exposure. Heuchera plants have 50 varieties and are found in different sizes and colors. One of the most significant benefits of growing this plant is that it does not require much care. So, you can grow it anywhere and anytime.
Coral Bells Companion Plants
Various plants are best to grow as companion plants of Coral Bells. Some of them are briefly explained with their details below:
1. Hostas
Hostas are commonly known as plantain lily, while Hosta spp is its botanic name. Rich and fertile soil is an essential requirement for Hostas to nurture well. They are mainly found in hardiness zones 3 to 9. Hostas are the famous heuchera companion plants that gardeners love. They are native to Japan, China, and Korea.
They do not require much care and attention to grow and only need full sun with a partially shady area. These beautiful plants have a variety of color ranges, including white, lavender, and pink. Their colors depend on the variety of the plant. They are a perfect companion with the coral bell plants because of their large foliage with different color shades. Grow them together and add texture and a lovely view to the garden.
2. Japanese Painted Fern
Japanese Painted Fern is commonly known as fern and its botanic name is Athyrium niponicum. It thrives best when moist and well-drained soil is provided and thrives in hardiness zones 3 to 8. The Japanese-painted fern is a beautiful plant with many triangular leaves. It has grayish-green leaves with a purple midrib, making it colorful and the best companion for the coral bell plant.
This plant prefers an entire, shady area. It provides the best companionship with the coral bell plant because Japanese fainted ferns also require the same care as coral bells. So, it will be easy to grow it, their beautiful colors together create a stunning garden look.
3. Astilbe
Astilbe, commonly known as false spirea, botanically known as Astilbe spp. It is found in hardiness zones 3 to 8 and needs loamy and moist soil to grow well. Another easy-to-grow and best companion with the coral bells is an astilbe plant. This spectacular plant provides a plume-like array with colorful shades of pink, white, red, and purple with tall stems. You can choose medium-sized or dwarf astilbe for your coral bells in the garden.
The airy foliage of the astilbe gives a unique and lush look to the coral bells and creates a stunning view. Coral bells have various colors; combining these two plants will create multiple color ranges with the same care routine as coral bells. The native of this beautiful plant is from North and East America.
4. Impatiens
The common name of Impatiens is busy Lizzy. However, its botanic name is Impatiens walleriana. Well-drained and rich soil is required for the better growth of Impatiens. This plant thrives fully in hardiness zones 10-11. Impatiens are trendy plants due to their ability to survive in any condition and their non-stop blooming period during summer. This plant has a wide color range, including red, pink, white, violet, purple, and yellow.
Combining both coral bells and impatiens creates a lovely view of the garden. Impatiens bloom throughout the summer, providing a variety of bright colors as a companion to coral bells. Their growing abilities and preferences make them excellent matches as companions. Impatiens are native to eastern and northern North America.
5. Daylilies
Daylilies are commonly known as ditch lily while botanically known as Hemerocallis spp. It mainly grows in hardiness zones 3 to 10. The general soil requirements of daylilies are medium loamy and rich fertile soil. The daylily is the best choice to grow in a garden because its bulbs produce grass-like mounds from which its long stems emerge.
It needs full sun with a little shady area to grow. It is the best companion with coral bells because of its waterfall look. Its flowers only bloom for 24 hours; as you can see, its name, “Daylily,” symbolizes its uniqueness. There is a variety of colors in its flowers, so it adds beautiful coloring and texture to its companion coral bells. This plant is native to Asia.
6. Hellebore
The common name of Hellebore is Lenten rose. Whereas, the botanic name is Helleborus orientalis. It requires moist and well-drained soil to nurture well and is mainly found in hardiness zones 3 to 9. The Hellebore plant is famous for its low-lying clump and thick foliage, which are evergreen leaves. The palmlike and lobes leaves are its specialty, making them the best companion with coral bells.
Hellebores look stunning as a companion of the coral bell because of their color range, including yellow, white, pink, and purple flowers. Both plants have similar care requirements, so they can quickly grow together. It would be best to plant them both in a shady garden. Hellebore is native to mountainous regions of Europe.
7. Iris
Iris plant is commonly known as Junos however, its botanical name is Iris. Rich and moist soil is required for the better growth of this plant. Iris thrives in hardiness zones 3 to 9. The Iris plant has almost 300 different species. This spectacular plant has a different color range: yellow, blue, white, and purple.
They like to grow in full sunlight, so it would be good if you planted them alongside coral bell plants. It depends on the variety of iris plants and which one you choose; it is a good idea to select the iris plant that grows taller. It will look stunning as a companion of coral bells. Iris plants are native to Asia and Europe.
8. Azalea
The botanic name of the Azalea plant is Rhododendron. Azalea thrives in hardiness zones 6 to 8. The soil requirements for this plant to grow are light and well-drained soil. Azaleas are flowers that look beautiful throughout the blooming season from lid late to spring. The dwarf variety of this plant produces bell-shaped flowers in various colors, including white, peach, orange, pink, and red.
Pairing up the azaleas with the heuchera plant is the best combination with different colors and textures. Azaleas prefer to grow in bright sunlight with a partially shady area. This stunning companion plant is native to North America.
Conclusion
Planting and growing plants in a garden are fun if you are fond of them. Every gardener dreams about making his garden look more stunning and charming than others. If you were also searching for companion plants of coral bells to grow in your garden to make your garden more beautiful. In that case, reading this article is very helpful in choosing companion plants with coral bells. Make sure to provide proper care to the companion plant that it needs to create a unique pair.
FAQs
1. What to Plant with Coral Bells?
There are hundreds of companions for the coral bells, but some of them are the most fantastic flowering plants. A few are astilbe, hostas, hellebore, impatiens, iris, ferns, and azaleas described in the article. These flowering plants are best for some reasons, including their beautiful colors, similar care requirements, leaves and flowers, and height differences.
2. What Are the Bad Companion Plants for Coral Bells?
It depends on the specifications and needs of plants that mark their companionship with coral bells. All the shade-loving, sandy, or dry soil-loving plants are not ideal for coral bells. bell-shaped plants look stunning and colorful as a companions of coral bells.
3. Is It a Must to Divide Coral Bells?
Yes, you can divide coral bells after every 3-5 years. If you notice that the center of the plants becomes woody and the planting is not growing anymore, it is time to divide it. After dividing the heucheras and replanting them in the spring, the plant develops new roots in the new soil until winter.