Brunnera

Family Boraginaceae. Name: in honor of the Swiss botanist Samuel Brunner.

Description: Three species are known, occurring in the Caucasus, Western and Eastern Siberia. Rhizomatous herbaceous perennials with large entire leaves and forget-me-not–like flowers gathered in paniculate or corymbose inflorescences.

Location: When placing cultivar Brunnera in the garden, choose a location where they receive morning sunlight and are shaded in the afternoon. In full shade the plants become leggy and lose their decorative value, while when grown in full sun Brunnera need constant soil and air moisture, which is possible only if a pond is present. In hotter climates they should not be planted in full sun at all.

Soil: Brunnera prefers clayey, consistently moist soils. It grows very well on the north side of a house where rainwater runs off the roof. With insufficient moisture the leaves wilt and by mid-summer the plant completely loses its decorative value. A site with moderately moist soils is preferable for Brunnera. Soils that are too rich, especially those fertilized with fresh manure, cause active, prolonged leaf growth, which disrupts the natural seasonal rhythm of growth and development characteristic of these species.

Care: It should be noted that Brunnera, which, as already mentioned, produces new leaves throughout the season, is decorative from spring until late autumn. After flowering the leaves of Brunnera dry fairly quickly and become covered with brown spots, so it is better to cut them in July. By mid-August new leaves have already grown, which are retained until the frosts. But neither variety of Brunnera keeps its leaves over the winter.

Care of Brunnera plantings: In dense thickets of Brunnera, whose powerful rhizomes intertwine and keep out weeds, care consists of cutting off leaves that have lost their decorative quality. Brunnera is less resistant to weeds. Its clump spreads slowly, and weeds such as goutweed, zhirukha and other long-rhizomed perennials can overwhelm it. Therefore timely weeding is the basis for good growth of this plant. It does not require watering or fertilization. Loosening the soil around plantings is not recommended because the rhizomes lie close to the surface. No diseases have been noted.

Brunneras are not weedy, but Siberian Brunnera spreads so rapidly via long rhizomes that limiting its acquisitive tendencies is the gardener's concern.

Propagation: by dividing the rhizomes, by pieces of rhizome, and by sowing seeds. Self-seeding is possible. Brunneras flower in spring, and therefore division and transplanting are carried out at the end of summer, when the plants have already set the flower buds for the following year. Divisions planted in late July–August root in autumn, overwinter well and bloom in the spring of the following year. Note that Brunnera is not transplanted in spring; it is transplanted only with a large clump of earth.

Uses: Brunnera is good to use for creating stable decorative groups within mixed borders. Brunnera can also be used in borders, as it does not spread excessively, holds its shape throughout the season, its leaves are neat, and no diseases have been noted. It can also be used for planting in shady rock gardens, but in their moistest parts.

Companions: A dense, attractive clump of Brunnera with a cloud of blue flowers above it looks wonderful next to drumstick primula, hellebore, Colchic epimedium, ramsons (wild garlic), lady fern (Athyrium filix-femina) and others.