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Lungwort

Pulmonaria saccharata (pul-mo-NARE-ee-ah sak-kar-RAY-tah)

Family: Boraginaceae Non-native Herbaceous

Lungwort was historically used for treating lung ailments because the spotted leaves resemble the lung, thus the scientific and common name. It is beautiful in the shade garden, where its large, fuzzy rosette of leaves makes a soft ground cover. 'Mrs. Moon' has pink flowers and silver spotted foliage; 'Sissinghurst White' has white flowers. Lungwort grows best in cool, moist soil that is high in organic matter. These plants can be propagated by division in fall or by seed sown in early spring.

Source: NC State Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox ↗ NC State Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox, 23 attributes.

How it fits the guild

Guild layer 4 - Herbaceous
See companions & conflicts ↓

Companions & Conflicts

Curated pairwise relationships between this plant and others in the library — who feeds whom, who competes, who confuses the pests. Green reads as a good pairing, red as one to avoid.

No curated interactions recorded for this species yet.

Also noted by NC State

Related species the NC State Plant Toolbox flags for this plant — look-alikes to tell apart, and plants that play a similar role in a planting. Ones we carry in the library are linked.

Full plant profile

Growing Conditions
Plant type
Perennial
Life cycle
Perennial
USDA zones
3a, 3b, 4a, 4b, 5a, 5b, 6a, 6b, 7a, 7b, 8a, 8b
Light
Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day) | Partial Shade (Direct sunlight only part of the day, 2-6 hours)
Soil texture
High Organic Matter
Soil drainage
Moist
NC region
Coastal; Mountains; Piedmont
Canopy layer
4 - Herbaceous
Form & Appearance
Hairs present
No
Flower color
Blue; Pink; White
Flower detail
'Mrs. Moon' has pink flowers and silver spotted foliage; 'Sissinghurst White' has white flowers.
Bloom time
Spring
Wildlife & Ecology
Native status
Non-native
Origin
Europe
Landscape Use
Garden tags
#spring interest #partial shade tolerant #shade garden #white flowers #perennial #pink flowers #blue flowers #HS304
Problems & Resistance
Propagation
Division; Seed

Planted at Hunnicutt

Nobody’s planted this one yet.