Favorite Flowers: Lungwort

Allergy Index Scale: 2
Perennial, zones 4-9

Trevi Fountain lungwort in bloom

Partial shade to shade, 6-12 inches

Lungwort, or pulmonaria, is a reliable perennial for the shade garden that blooms in early spring.  Depending on the variety, the foliage may be plain green, spotted with white, or nearly pure silver.  The flowers may be blue, pink, or white.  The specimen in the photograph is "Trevi Fountain," which has pink buds that open to a lovely clear blue. 


Plant lungwort in moist but well-drained soil, enriched with plenty of compost. I like them combined with hostas, columbine, coral bells and bleeding heart. This gives me a shade bed with interesting color and texture throughout the growing season. The white markings on the leaves of lungwort and hostas help brighten shady areas of the garden.

Lungwort is also known as pulmonaria, Bethleham
sage, Jerusalem sage or Joseph's Mary.

I try to keep plants with similar water needs planted together to simplify watering. Planted closely, lungwort serves as a ground cover which can help prevent weeds, with foliage attractive long after the spring flowers are over.

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At the top of posts about plants, you will notice the "allergy index scale" rating for each plant I discuss.  The Ogren Plant Allergy Scale rates the allergy potential of a plant, but of course does not indicate whether you or anyone else actually is allergic to it.  In this scale, 1 is the best rating, with the least potential to cause allergic reactions; and 10 is the worst rating, with the most potential to cause allergic reactions. Because lungwort are rated 2, quite low on the scale, I feel free to plant them in large groups, without worrying about allergies.