Heuchera
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The genus Heuchera includes at least 50 species of herbaceous perennial plants in the family Saxifragaceae, all native to North America. Common names include alumroot and coral bells. They have palmately lobed leaves on long petioles, and a thick, woody rootstock. The genus was named after Johann Heinrich von Heucher (1677–1746), an 18th century German physician.
Alumroot species grow in varied habitats, so some species look quite different from one another, and have varying preferences regarding temperature, soil, and other natural factors. H. maxima is found on the Channel Islands of California, where it grows on rocky, windy, saline-washed ocean shores. H. sanguinea, called coral bells because of its terra cotta-colored flowers, can be found in the warm, dry canyons of Arizona. Gardeners and horticulturists have developed a multitude of hybrids between various Heuchera species. There is an extensive array of blossom sizes, shapes, and colors, foliage types, and geographic tolerances.
Selected species:
- Heuchera abramsii - San Gabriel Alumroot
- Heuchera alpestris - San Bernardino Alumroot
- Heuchera americana - American Alumroot
- Heuchera brevistaminea - Laguna Mountain Alumroot
- Heuchera brizoides
- Heuchera cespitosa - Tufted Alumroot
- Heuchera chlorantha - Green-flowered Alumroot
- Heuchera cylindrica
- Heuchera duranii - Duran's Alumroot
- Heuchera elegans - Urnflower Alumroot
- Heuchera maxima - Island Alumroot, Jill-of-the-Rocks
- Heuchera merriamii - Merriam's Alumroot
- Heuchera micrantha - Crevice Alumroot, Smallflower Alumroot
- Heuchera parishii - Mill Creek Alumroot
- Heuchera pilosissima - Seaside Alumroot
- Heuchera pulchella - Sandia Alumroot
- Heuchera sanguinea - Coral Bells
- Heuchera villosa
- Heuchera wootonii - Wooton's Alumroot
