Description
This is a more or less evergreen species making flat mats of large heart-shaped, leathery leaves and unusual (even for Asarum!) tri-lobed, flowers.
Usually these are brown and green, shaded with red in the throat, a colouring which is enhanced by reddish down and longer, wispy white hairs. The petals have greatly extended and drawn-out, wispy petal tips. These are borne throughout April and May, continuing sporadically until July. In this horticultural form however the red and brown colourings have been lost and the flowers present as green with white down and hairs.
Readily grown and it grows well in a humus-rich loam with added sand and gravel for drainage. I suspect it would do just as well with less fussing and provision of its imagined needs! This species certainly enjoys partial shade and moist soils but it tolerates some sun and occasional dryness quite well.
This is raised from nursery stock imported by me over 35 years ago from a now retired grower in the western USA. This was shared with a German friend who passed it to a Dutch grower and finally it was bought back by us from plants they in turn shared with a grower in Japan! The variant came back to us from Japan, so after a round-the-world trip and a half, the white form is now in the UK again.
