In winter, the exceptional Bergenia comes into its own: the colorful autumn colors remain throughout the winter. It forms a harmonious play of colors with snow and frost.
Bergenia (Bergenia spec.) not only have beautiful flowers and leaves, but are also easy to care for and hardy. This is precisely why the Bergenia was voted Perennial of the Year in 2022 and has since been found more and more often in gardens.
Bergenia: flowering time, origin and characteristics
Bergenia are often referred to as dextrose or giant saxifrage and belong to the saxifrage family (Saxifragaceae). The Altai bergenia (Bergenia cordifolia), originating from the Central Asian high mountains, is a naturally occurring species and is mostly used for breeding. In Europe, in addition to the original Bergenia, you can also often find hybrids that have emerged from breeding. The leaves of the Bergenia are about 35 cm in size, rounded and rich green. They are spirally arranged, short-stalked and evergreen. The beautiful autumn coloring in red, bronze and violet tones lasts until spring and makes the Bergenia a must-have in the winter garden. When the bergenia blooms from April to May, strong flower stalks are formed, which push out between the leaves. The flower stalks are 30 to 40 cm long and have a richly branched, coiled inflorescence. Depending on the variety, the flowers are white, pink, violet or red. After all, they offer a moderate supply of pollen and nectar for bees, bumblebees and other insects.
Tip: Bergenia flowers can be used as cut flowers and provide a nice, textural contrast to other flower shapes.
The most beautiful bergenia varieties and species
The most popular varieties of Bergenia include those that have a special leaf color or flower.
- Bergenia cordifolia: This species is quite often offered in the trade. she is alsoknown as Heartleaf Bergenia. It is a fairly robust and easy-care bergenia species.
- Bergenia purpurascens: This species gets an even more intensively colored foliage in autumn than Bergenia cordifolia .
- Bergenia crassifolia: One of the most beautiful wild species is the thick-leaf bergenia, which is also used to make Siberian tea. You can use them in the rock garden, for example.
- Bergenia cordifolia 'Schneekönigin': The initially bright white flowers turn to a soft pink after a short time. This spectacle is a great combination with the evergreen leaves.
- Bergenia cordifolia 'Eroica': The intense red coloring on the underside of the leaves in autumn makes this variety special. Due to the robust stems, their inflorescences are particularly suitable for use as cut flowers. The flowers are red-purple.
- Bergenia cordifolia 'Baby Doll': The name of this variety says it all, because it stays small, compact and only grows about 25cm high. Its flowers are light pink.
Plants: location and procedure
Bergenias thrive in a sunny spot that is not too dark, but bloom best in a sunny spot. In general, Bergenia are undemanding, they can be planted in the rock garden as well as in open spaces and on the edges of trees. The soil should be rich in nutrients, humus and skeletal, i.e. coarse-grained and permeable. Moderately dry or fresh soil is ideal, as bergenia generally tolerate drought better than high humidity. When planting, it should be noted that a sufficient planting distance of 35 to 40 cm is allowed, as bergenias become wider over time. You can plant about five plants per square meter. It is best to plant the Bergenia in the spring. To do this, proceed as follows:
- Dig a planting hole, about twice the size of the root ball.
- If necessary, improve the soil by adding our Plantura organic potting soil, for example. It is coarse and yet humorous, which meets the location requirements of theBergenia matches.
- Use Bergenie. The plant can sit a little lower than when it was in the pot.
- Fill gaps with soil and press down carefully.
- Water well.
Bergenia can also be cultivated in pots. The vessel should then have a volume of at least ten liters. For pot cultivation, it is best to use a loose, humus-rich substrate, such as our Plantura organic potting soil. Our organic soil is in the slightly acidic pH range and naturally contains all the important nutrients, creating ideal starting conditions for the bergenia. Creating a drainage layer for water drainage is highly recommended when growing in pots.
Combine Bergenia: Bergenia can be combined with other wild Bergenia species and hybrids as well as ferns and grasses such as sedge (Carex) or bearskin grass ( Festuca).
Tip: Tree trunks and rocks in the background together with bergenia, ferns and grass create a beautiful overall picture. Bergenia often overgrows stones and wood.
Caring for Bergenia
Bergenias are extremely easy to care for. In spring, leaves that have turned brown can be cut off to create space and light for the new shoots.
Because bergenias need nutrient-rich soil, they should be fertilized regularly from spring to autumn. So that you don't have to apply fertilizer weekly, a fertilizer with a long-term effect such as our Plantura organic flower fertilizer is well suited. It is lightly worked into the soil and soil organisms then gradually release nutrients which the bergenia absorbs. The fertilizer lasts for several months, so that fertilizing in the spring is sufficient for the whole year.
Bergenias in pot cultures should be watered regularly, but do not need too much water. For outdoor crops, it is sufficient to water during a prolonged drought, but even a short dry spell will not harm the Bergenia.
Tip: Old stands of Bergenia can look bare after a few years because no new leaves are formed at the base of the creeping stem shoots. In order to prevent this, it helps to injure the creeping sprouts with a sharp object like a spade every year. The injury sets a hormonal chain reaction in motion for new leaves to sproutcares. Cutting back vigorously or picking up and dividing the plants also ensures more vigorous, dense and handsome growth.
Bergenia not blooming: What to do?
Although bergenias are quite robust, it can still happen that a bergenia simply does not bloom. This can be caused by:
- Overwintering: If potted bergenias are overwintered too warm, they may not flower in spring.
- Young plants: Young bergenia need 12 - 24 months until they form the first flowers after propagation.
- Too shady location: If it is too dark, the Bergenia should be transplanted to a sunny location.
- Too much fertilizer: Over-fertilization can also lead to a lack of flowering. If none of the other causes mentioned above apply, you should reduce the fertilizer application.
- Waterlogging: Persistent waterlogging leads to root rot, which kills the plant. You should therefore make sure that water can drain off easily.
Are Bergenia hardy?
Bergenias are generally hardy and evergreen. Bergenia cordifolia even tolerates temperatures down to - 35 °C. However, frost damage can occur on some leaves. If they are perceived as disturbing, they can be cut away in the spring. From autumn onwards, Bergenia should no longer be fertilized and cut so that they can survive the cold season well. How to hibernate Bergenia species-appropriate:
- Leave bergenias outside in the bucket in winter and wrap them with fleece.
- In spring you can cover flower buds with brushwood or fir branches. The protection is only removed just before flowering to protect against late frosts.
Propagation of Bergenia
There are different ways to propagate Bergenia. The easiest method is to divide of the mother plant. The he althy and strong mother plant is dug up in summer, the root ball is divided with a sharp knife or spade and the partial plants are planted again in a suitable location.
In order to get more young plants from the propagation, usein autumn Rhizome cuttings for propagation. You can use old, leafless rhizomes for this. They are simply dug up and stabbed. Cut the rhizomes into 4 to 5 cm long pieces and press them with about 5cm spacing in growing soil, for example in a growing tray. The roots should be oriented downwards and it is better to shorten roots that are too long. The upper half of the rhizome cutting sticks out of the ground. The substrate is now well moistened and set up at around 21 °C. If you keep the humidity high with a cover, then after ten to twelve weeks transplantable young plants will emerge that will flower in the next season.
Alternatively, propagation by sowing is possible. This sometimes results in hybrids of different varieties or even species when different bergenias are planted next to each other, because they hybridize relatively easily. For propagation, the seeds must be collected from the withered inflorescences in summer. In spring, the seeds are distributed in bowls with potting soil such as our Plantura organic herb and seed soil. Due to our nutrient-poor soil, the young plants form strong roots. Our substrate is also peat-free and particularly permeable, so waterlogging does not occur so quickly. The seeds are not or only slightly covered with soil, then they are light germinators. Place the trays in a light spot at around 21°C and keep the substrate moist. Seedlings can be expected after about four to six weeks. After germination, the bergenia are placed a little cooler, at around 15 °C. Here they can form more leaves and then be planted outdoors. The young plants will only flower for the first time after two years.
Are bergenias poisonous?
No, bergenias are not poisonous. Bergenia crassifolia is used medicinally in Russia, Tibet and Mongolia and is also being researched here. Because it contains the hydroquinone arbutin, which in large quantities is liver-damaging and possibly carcinogenic and mutagenic, bergenia should not necessarily be consumed regularly.
The Bergenia is the ideal plant for a rock garden. You can find out how to create a rock garden yourself and which plants are also suitable for this in our special article.