Bergenia, the cobbler’s plant

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Large, thick leaves — the reason it is called elephant ears — rise from a creeping rhizome, with cute flowers clumped together into a bunch. Bergenia (Bergenia), the cobbler’s plant, is one of very few plants blooming from early winter to winter’s end; give it winter sun and summer shade under deciduous trees and it needs virtually no care.

A typical plant for rocky ground, edges, and flower beds.

Planting bergenia

Plant bergenia in fall to have it blooming during the month of early winter.

It is also possible to plant in spring if you’re able to water regularly at the beginning.

A sun-endowed spot in winter is crucial for your bergenia to bloom. However, since it needs shade during summer, the ideal setting for it is to grow at the foot of deciduous trees.

Bergenia doesn’t fear the cold nor does it fear freezing, this actually makes the color of its leaves more intense.

• You can blend a bit of special planting soil mix to your garden earth to increase fertility and thus the blooming.
• Take care though, because excessively rich soil might alter the blooming.
• Multiply through crown division during the months of early spring or mid-spring after the blooming.

Bergenia grows along a creeping rhizome, which makes it a plant that tends to nibble space up as years go by.

Pruning and caring for bergenia

The hardiness of Bergenia is very high, since it resists the lowest temperatures without any issue.

• Cut wilting flowers off as they die off.
• Eliminate withered leaves at the foot of the plant.
• Water in case of lack of rain.

If your bergenia doesn’t flower, this is probably due to the fact that the soil is too rich, and/or that it lacks direct sun in winter.

• If this is the case, you must transfer the location of your bergenia in fall.

Bergenia is very resistant to most diseases.

• When deadheading bergenia, cut the whole flower stalk back to its base among the leaves rather than just snipping off the faded head, so no bare stubs are left standing.
• Vine weevil is the main pest of bergenia: adults cut notches into the thick leaf margins, while their grubs feed on the rhizome and can cause a whole clump to collapse.
• Go easy on high-nitrogen feeds for bergenia: excess nitrogen encourages lush leafy growth at the expense of flowering, and bergenia is valued for both its evergreen foliage and its spring blooms.
• When a clump goes bare and woody in the middle with flowers only around the edge, lift it and replant the vigorous young outer rhizome sections, discarding the old centre.

Bergenia through the year: when to do what

Bergenia works to a very simple calendar, with only a handful of key moments in the year. Here is what each season calls for and what you can expect in return.

Outside these moments, bergenia asks for little more than water in case of lack of rain.

Which bergenia to choose

Bergenias differ mainly in flower colour, the height of the flower stems and how strongly the foliage turns red in the cold. The table below compares the varieties most often found in garden centres and catalogues.

Learn more about bergenia

Native to China and Afghanistan, this is one of very few plants that blooms as early as early winter, and up until the end of winter.

This plant, also called the cobbler’s plant or elephant ears, forms amazing large, thick leaves and the cute flowers are clumped together to form a bunch.

With high levels of tannin compounds, the fact that cobblers used it to tan leather gave the plant its name of the “cobbler’s plant”.