Mine is peaking with foliage right now.... (I have 'Mountain Magic')

What type of conditions do you have it growing in? (Sun, moisture, etc...)

Pulmonaria always seem to get ratty after they bloom. You have the right idea with cutting off the leaves. You can cut them all the way back, give them a good watering and you'll soon have a nice fresh looking plant. Dividing is also easy...just separate the crowns and replant them. Water them well before and after dividing and replanting. I've done both in summer with no problem.

Webkat:

Glad to hear your lungwort is doing better than mine. Mine does great at the beginning of the season. Its just this time of year it gets cranky. It is in morning sun with daily watering. The tips look a little rusted and I don't know if that is too much water or an excess of sun in the a.m.

Harleylady:

Appreciate your feedback. I think I will go ahead and divide it. As bad as it looks now I'm willing to take a chance on killing it. This will be my first attempt at dividing so it should be interesting.

Thank you folks.

Kate

Mine have gotten "eaten" by the hosta they were supposed to compliment....
I hope they live to bloom next spring before the hosta get huge again.
Linda C

Kate, I've gone through this every year! Each spring I am in love with my pulmonarias. Then about this time they start looking ratty and I toy with the idea of pulling them out. Being the procrastinator that I am, it doesn't get much further than that - thinking about it. But then the following spring I am happy for my procrastination, because they are beautiful!... until late June again... and so on.

I was considering cutting them back also this year, instead of yanking them. So harleylady, I guess we can just cut them all the way back? I'm a scaredy-cat when it comes to this, but having just done it with my columbines, and having them grow back beautifully, maybe I'd better get out there and do it right away while I'm still brave enough.

:)
Dee

I always cut Pulmonaria back hard after blooming. The new foliage is great. Depending on the summer heat (& humidity?), sometimes I cut them back even again later on to get fresh foliage again. Doesn't seem to phase them a bit.

Now, having said that, I am also considering shovel pruning one of mine. I have and absolutely love 'Majeste'. But 'Blotche' is a couple of spots away and just pales in comparison next to Majeste. It blooms, but not as much. It refreshes its foliage, but its not as special. It's not as big overall. I recently dug up 'Blotche' and put it in a pot in the "storage" area to see if I can find it a home before I ditch it. It might resent being dug up now, but I don't really care. I hate to throw stuff away, but it absolutely did not belong in that bed any longer. I gave it 3 years and it will never shine next to Majeste.

I would not divide pulmonaria this time of year. I would wait til the fall when its cooler and less stressful.

Thank you so much everyone. Some great thoughts. I'm going to go out and have a quiet moment with my lungwort tomorrow morning. I will let you all know if my plant emerges from that meeting with a haircut or at the tip of my shovel.

I'm very happy to hear I'm not the only one struggling with this plant post-bloom.

Kate

I have some older ones who look bad for a while, the newer ones are beautiful. You can see a picture of Dark Vadar with heucheras pulchelle and Choc Ruffles taken after flowering. I take off the spent blooms. These pictures are towards the bottom of the post.

Here is a link that might be useful: GardenBuddies

I ripped mine out long ago...couldn't take the ratty mess.

My 'Diana Clare' is absolutely magnificent! Huge and very silver, the best silver I've ever tried to grow. And my soil is sandy and tends to get very dry.

Some Pulmonaria just don't perform well. The Chicago Botanic Garden has trialed them and posted the results online. I have 'Roy Davidson,' 1 of their recommendations. It looks good without much cutting back.

Here is a link that might be useful: CBG pulmonaria trial

I have 'Roy Davidson' and I am very happy with it. In spring after it stops blooming, I cut all the bloom stalks back to the base and it grows nice new leaves. Heres a photo of it in June:
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and the three of them on the left in the shade garden
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I got rid of 'Mrs. Moon' because it got powdery mildew and looked terrible in the summer.

Juliet

Juliet:

Great pictures. Very nice indeed. When you say 'shade garden' are we talking no sun at all or morning sun only?

This morning I went out and cut all the leaves off the plant. Fortunately Sweet Woodruff is growing around it so that area does not look too bare. I'm curious to see how well it grows back. Thank you everyone.

Kate

OMG - WHERE do I get 'Roy' ??? I never see this in the nurseries - must be mail order?

Gorgeous.

Westy

Kate - the garden faces northeast so it gets morning sun. Hope your lungwort shapes up for you - if not maybe you could try a different kind.

Westy - I got Roy Davidson at a local nursery, but I think Bluestone Perennials carries it.

Juliet

Westy - I got my 'Roy Davidson' at a Boy Scout plant sale, but I see from the catalogue that Countryside Nursery in Crystal Lake carries it.

Westy:

Do you know about the resource at Dave's Garden to find a vendor for the plant you need? I seached on Lungwort 'Roy Davidson' for you and the link is below.

Here is a link that might be useful: Lungwort 'Roy Davidson'