Ornamental · Boraginaceae
Lungwort
Pulmonaria saccharata
Give it cool shade and steady moisture and lungwort rewards you, brightening your dimmest corners with early spotted leaves and pink-to-blue flowers.
Partial shade
Every 7 days
USDA 3–9
10–18 in · 25–46 cm
Overview
If you are just starting out, lungwort is a kind plant to learn on. It is a low, clumping perennial loved for two gifts at once, its silver-spotted leaves and its early flowers that open pink and turn blue on the very same stem. It sits in the borage family, and its curious name came from old herbalists who thought the speckled leaves looked like ailing lungs. The spots are only part of the foliage, but the name has stayed with it ever since.
Think of this as a true shade plant that thrives right where others give up. It wakes up under trees and along the shady north side of a wall, and it flowers in late winter to spring while much of the garden is still asleep. Those early blooms feed the first bees, and the marked leaves keep the display going long after the flowers have gone.
Best of all, lungwort asks very little of you once it has settled in. Keep the soil cool and evenly moist in genuine shade and it will knit into a slow, tidy ground cover without much fuss. The one misstep to avoid is hot, dry sun, which scorches the leaves and coaxes the plant into a sulky rest, and even that is easy to recover from with a shadier home.
Care
The short version: settle lungwort into part to full shade, keep the soil cool, rich, and evenly moist, offer a light feed each season, and lift and divide the clumps in fall once they start to crowd.
Light
Lungwort loves part to full shade, the deep, cool kind you find under trees or on the north side of a building. It is happy in full shade and still flowers, but true sun scorches the leaves and hurries the plant into early dormancy, so err toward the shadier corner.
Water
Aim to keep the soil cool and evenly moist but never waterlogged, watering about once a week through dry spells. Try not to let it dry out, or the leaves wilt and the plant rests to look after itself, and a good soak soon revives it.
Soil
Give it cool, humus-rich ground that holds moisture while still draining freely. Mix in plenty of compost or leaf mold, which mirrors the soft, leafy soil it would find on a woodland floor.
Humidity
Average
Feeding
A slow-release all-purpose fertilizer once a season is truly all it asks for. Scatter it during the growing season and trust the rich, organic soil to handle the rest.
Pruning
Gently pull off the older, tattered, or mildewed leaves whenever they turn up through the year. Trimming the foliage back once the flowers fade brings on a fresh, clean flush of leaves for summer.
Size & spacing
Plants stay comfortably low at 10 to 18 inches (25 to 46 cm) tall and reach wider than they are high, spreading 18 to 24 inches (46 to 61 cm) across. Allow each one that much room and it will slowly weave into a soft ground cover.
When to plant
Lungwort likes the cooler stretches of the year, so there is no rush. Set new plants out in spring or fall into a shaded bed, and the flowers will open in late winter to spring, pink at first and ripening to blue, long before most perennials stir.
Northern hemisphere
Southern hemisphere
Typical months for a temperate climate: start earlier in warm zones, later where spring frosts linger.
- Sow: Seldom grown from seed; if used, sow seed in early spring.
- Plant: Spring or fall in a shaded site.
- Harvest: Blooms late winter to spring (April to May), flowers opening pink and maturing to blue.
Hardiness
USDA hardiness zones: 3–9
Temperature: down to -40°C
Troubleshooting
Given the right spot, lungwort stays healthy, so nearly every hiccup comes back to too much sun or soil that is too wet or too dry. Take a calm look at the leaves and crown for the early clues below. Sort out the site and the plant usually mends itself.
A softening crown and roots as the plant sinks
Crown and root rot creeps in where the soil stays soggy and cannot drain, turning the roots dark and mushy. The kindest fix is to open the ground up with organic matter and keep the plant clear of any low spot where water gathers. Lift the crowns that still look healthy, divide them, and settle them into soil that drains, and you will likely save the plant.
Fix:
- Improve drainage with organic matter
- Avoid waterlogged sites
- Divide and replant healthy crowns in well-drained soil
Browning leaf edges and midday wilting in the sun
This is leaf scorch, the plant's way of telling you it is getting too much sun on soil that has dried out, and the leaves may flop when the heat peaks. Move it into part to full shade, keep the soil evenly moist, and tuck a little mulch around it to hold water and cool the roots. Lungwort is a shade lover by nature, so a kinder spot fixes almost all of it.
Fix:
- Move or transplant to part to full shade
- Water to keep soil evenly moist
- Mulch to keep roots cool and reduce moisture loss
A pale dusty film creeping over the leaves
Don't panic if you spot this: it is only powdery mildew, and it shows up when the soil has gone dry and the air sits too still between crowded leaves. Snip away the worst leaves, give the clump a little breathing room, and keep the ground evenly damp. A firm cut-back invites healthy new growth, and the plant bounces right back.
Fix:
- Remove and discard affected leaves
- Improve air circulation and keep soil evenly moist
- Cut back foliage to promote clean new growth
Torn holes eaten through the leaves overnight
Those chewed holes and the glossy slime trails are the work of slugs and snails, and they get busiest after a spell of wet weather. Step out at dusk and lift them off by hand, then tidy away the leaf litter where they shelter by day. If they keep coming back, a gentle bait or a barrier will settle things down, and your plant will be fine.
Fix:
- Hand-pick slugs in the evening
- Remove leaf litter and debris that shelter them
- Use slug baits or barriers if damage is heavy
Toxicity
Here is some reassurance for pet owners and parents: lungwort is not toxic. The ASPCA does not list Pulmonaria as poisonous to cats or dogs, and there are no reports of harm to other animals or to people. A curious nibble is nothing to lose sleep over.
Safe for
People · Cats · Dogs · Horses · Rabbits · Livestock · Birds
Cats None
You can relax with cats around: lungwort holds no toxic compounds, so a curious nibble on a leaf will not hurt them.
Dogs None
A dog can push through the leaves or take a chew without any trouble, and the ASPCA does not list the plant as poisonous.
Horses Safe
Horses are perfectly fine near it, since the plant holds nothing that would bother a grazing animal of that size.
Rabbits Safe
Rabbits can wander through a planting with no worries, and the fuzzy leaves usually keep them from bothering with it anyway.
Livestock Safe
Cattle, goats, and sheep can graze nearby without concern, as there are no reports of poisoning from the foliage.
Birds Safe
Garden birds have nothing to fear from either the leaves or the flowers.
People Safe
Growing and handling lungwort is safe for people too, so there is no poisoning risk to little ones helping in the garden.
Varieties
Lungwort earns its place for its leaves as much as its flowers, and the named cultivars below sort out mostly by how silvered the foliage is and which color the blooms settle into.
Mrs. Moon
A well-loved old favorite whose leaves carry heavy silver spotting, with pink buds that soften into gentle blue flowers.
Raspberry Splash
An upright, easy grower with silver-spotted leaves and cheerful blooms in raspberry-pink to violet.
Spot On
A strong, willing selection with silver-spotted foliage and coral-pink flowers that mellow to blue as they age.
How to propagate
Lungwort multiplies with ease, and dividing a settled clump is far kinder to your nerves and far more reliable than fussing with seed.
DivisionEasy
Fall, when clumps become overcrowded · One growing season
Dividing is the friendly, dependable way to grow your collection, and it rarely goes wrong. Wait until fall, once the clump has filled out and crowded itself, then lift it, split the crown into pieces, and trim off the tired older leaves as you tuck each piece back in. Every division needs just one growing season to find its feet.
SeedModerate
Early spring · Seedlings reach blooming size in about a year
Seed takes more patience, and because the named cultivars will not come true, the seedlings seldom look like their parent. If you would like to give it a go, sow in early spring and let the little plants take about a year to reach blooming size.
Myths
The spotted leaves mean lungwort cures lung disease.
Long ago the doctrine of signatures took the leaf spots as proof the plant could heal the lungs, but those spots are simply a natural marking on the foliage. The name and the old herbal stories grew out of that resemblance, not from any real effect on the lungs.
Lungwort spreads fast and turns invasive.
It eases outward slowly on its roots and never takes over the way truly invasive plants do. Should a clump ever grow wider than you like, you just dig it up and divide it, which is simple and forgiving.