Yes, you can divide them. If the plan is mature, you should be able to break rooted sections off - they form multiple crowns. I believe you can also root cuttings, but I have never done that.

Thanks for the info! I went and checked, and there are multiple crowns! One is a deep bronze/purple, and the other is almost chartreuse green.

Once they get the irrigation going, I'm definitely dividing!

Suzi

Hi,

I start new plants all summer long. Just break a side shoot off the plant and stick it in soil. I do this all the time. They do root quicker in the early spring when it is still cool out.

Lisa

My heuchera got severely munched on. Would it be OK to divide it now, when it barely has any leaves? Or should I wait until it recovers a bit and then divide? I can definitely see that there are several crowns. I would love to have tons of heuchera all over my shady yard.

Martha

Hi Martha,
I'm relatively inexperienced dividing heuchera, but if it were me, and there are "several crowns", I'd experiment. Divide off one or two and see if they survive. If they don't do well, you've only lost a couple.

When the other remaining crowns leaf out, try a few of them as well. Let us know your findings!

Deb

Martha,

go for it! I make dozens of new plants that way every year. I bring them to my local swaps and pass them out. I don't use any root tone, I just break off the side shoot and stick it in the potting mix. I keep them in a shady area and BAM, a new plant.

Lisa

PS: it is still in the 30s here at night, too cold for rooting! I usually do them when it's around 50 to 60.

I'll definitely separate and replant these. I'd love to do it now, but it still could get very cold here. I'm getting mixed suggestions as far as timing, ie. fall vs early spring vs warmer weather. There isn't much else I can do in the yard at this point. I just took a quick tour of the yard, since we just arrived home from spring break in Hilton Head. We have an incredible mole infestation. I can't find a single spot in the lawn that isn't undermined with mole tunnels. I'll need to see whether it's worth going after them or waiting for natural processes to provide a predator or illness or starvation to get rid of them. Oh, we'll. Sorry I got off topic.

Martha

There are a couple of videos on youtube that talk and show how to divide and propagate heuchera. Just do a search for them. I did not save any (as I watched many and was at that time an expert). Many of the growing nurseries have videos. I want to start a few also and see how seeds do for me. Good luck to all of you. Growing season is soon upon us. Paula

Ilovetogrow,
Definitely try starting from seed. I wintersowed a bunch of Heuchera seeds I'd received in trades last winter, and I had excellent germination. They didn't put on much size, but I planted them out anyway, since I couldn't keep a container watered to save my children,LOL. I haven't tried to find them yet this spring. I think I'll leave the fallen leaves and pine needles in place to prevent rapid shifts in soil temperature for a while yet. I planted the seedlings in the same bed that I transplanted a group of Trillium into while I clear out some invasive ivy and lily of the valley. So, I'll be tiptoeing very gingerly in that area. I was amazed at the number of baby Trillium I found digging around. I had to carefully disentangle the roots of them from those of the non-natives. So, I hope they survived the transplant. I decided that was safer than spraying chemicals over a large area and hoping to avoid the Trillium. There are also Solomon's Seal scattered through that bed, but they sprout later in the season than the others, so it's harder to identify them. I'll have to decide soon how to deal with them.

Oops. Guess I babbled a bit and wandered off topic. But, I will be including any Heuchera that I am able to acquire in that same semi-shade garden bed. Happy gardening!

Martha

I never even thought of dividing them until someone posted it on this forum. I usually don't want more of the same plant, I want new ones but I did give quite a few away to friends.

I have also often taken a steak knife and cut right down the center of the taproot. Split the plant in 1/2. I rarely have a heuchera that I divide that doesn't make it.

Last year's heuchera seedlings came thru the winter with flying colors!!!! I don't think I will bother in buying anymore new ones from the store...when I have so many beautiful ones here now.

Brenda

Heucheras are one of the easiest plants to divide. You can often do it with your bare hands. In fact, they like being divided and buried deeper every couple of years with fresh soil.

The best heuchera gardener I ever knew dug up all of them every year and divided hers. They thrived on it.

If you buy an expensive one, and it's big enough to divide, you can get two for one by dividing. With good fertilizing and watering, in a short time you won't notice the difference.

Yes you can divide- replant a munched on plant. I lost Raspberry Ice, eaten right down to the ground. I just dug it up broke it in two root stalks ( it was a mature plant) and buried them both. Next spring, they were both growing.