PlantFiles: Bloodroot, Red Puccoon
Sanguinaria canadensis f. multiplex

I grow both the single and double form. I find the double most striking and it also holds its petals longer. The double form 'Mulitplex' is sterile so will not set seed. Both forms are easy to grow. The single from seed is best to plant freshly harvested. Within weeks I have had it germinate. It takes roughly a year to two years for the small rhizome that forms from the seed to be mature enough to flower. Allow the leaves to fully ripen over the summer. The double form seems to hold its leaves for a longer period of time. All my plants are in full sun in April when they bloom yet once the leaves are fully set, they are in full shade. The soil is consistently moist, well-drained, rich, and acidic. Well worth growing for the short bloom period in Mid-April. This is a North American native plant once used by the native Americans as a source for face paint. The rhizome, once cut, exudes an orangey-red sap, thus the name "Bloodroot".

I found one of these on a walk through the foothills of South Carolina several years ago. It has come back every year in my garden since as one of the first flowers to appear at the end of winter. The flower lasts only a week or so and is replaced with a seed pod. A small, delicate, unusual little plant that likes shade and moisture.

A double form of S. canadensis.

This form bears fully double, pure white flowers that last longer than the single form.

Loves a humus rich, well-drained soil in shade. It will tolerate light shade as long as the soil is well-drained but moist.

An excellent and showy woodland garden plant. Won't come true from seed!