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Common Name: foam flower
Type: Herbaceous perennial
Family: Saxifragaceae
Zone: 4 to 9
Native Range: Nova Scotia, Appalachian Mountains to Alabama West to Minnesota
Height: 0.75 to 1 feet
Spread: 1 to 2 feet
Bloom Time: May
Bloom Color: Pink, White
Bloom Description: White or pink
Sun: Part shade to full shade
Water: Medium
Maintenance: Low
Flowers: Showy Flowers
Leaves: Good Fall Color
Tolerates: Deer, Rabbits
Uses: Groundcover, Will Naturalize
Culture
Easily grown in average, medium, well-drained soil in part shade to full shade. Stoloniferous. Prefer organically rich, moisture-retentive soils. Wet soils, particularly in winter, can be fatal, however. Soil should not be allowed to dry out.
Noteworthy Characteristics
Foamflower is clump-forming perennial which spreads rapidly by runners (stolons) to form dense, 1-2' wide clumps of foliage. Plants are in the same family as and somewhat suggestive of Heuchera, Tellima and Mitella. Sometimes commonly called false miterwort because of its similarity to Mitella (miterwort). Semi-glossy, heart-shaped, 3-5 lobed leaves (4" across) rise directly from the stolons. Leaves may have reddish variegation along the veins. Foliage is evergreen in mild winters, often turning reddish bronze in autumn and winter. Tiny, white flowers with very long stamens (foamy texture of stamens results in the common name) appear in airy racemes in spring for about 6 weeks on numerous, erect, wiry, mostly leafless flower stems which rise well above the foliage clump to a height of 10-12". Flower buds are pinkish.
Problems
No serious insect or disease problems.
Garden Uses
Shaded rock gardens, woodland gardens, border fronts, wild gardens, naturalistic plantings or moist areas along stream banks. Can be massed to form an attractive ground cover.