The Solar Eclipse Heucherella, otherwise known as the Heucherella X ‘Solar Eclipse’ Plant Patent #23,647 or Confederate Rose, Confederate Rose Mallow, Confederate Vine, Cotton Rose, is a rather well known shrub plant by gardening enthusiasts around the world.
Best known for its low maintenance and moderate growth, this shrub will likely liven up your house (or garden) with its multicolored colored leaves. But, only if you learn how to take proper care of it for it to thrive.
Fortunately, this is exactly what we’ll cover in this Solar Eclipse Heucherella Care Guide. So let’s dive in.
In order to take proper care of your Solar Eclipse Heucherella you’ll need to keep in mind the following guidelines:
- Water: The Solar Eclipse Heucherella prefers constant watering each week and more during the hot season.
- Light: Keep your Heucherella X ‘Solar Eclipse’ Plant Patent #23,647 in an environment where it can receive partial shade to partial sun on a daily basis.
- Soil: Make sure to keep the Solar Eclipse Heucherella in soil with well-draining properties, so ideally, one that is made of loam.
And that’s practically it! If you keep these three factors in check, your Solar Eclipse Heucherella will likely have all it needs for it to survive and even thrive.
Scientific / Botanical Aspects
In botanical terms, the Solar Eclipse Heucherella belongs to the Malvaceae family, the genus Hibiscus and the species Mutabilis, hence its scientific (or botanical) name Heucherella X ‘Solar Eclipse’ Plant Patent #23,647 (hew-ker-REL-uh).
As with other Hibiscus’s, the Solar Eclipse Heucherella is an evergreen plant, which means it will be present year round in your garden.
Growing Region
Knowing your plant’s native region is very useful, as it can give you tips on which environment is best for your Solar Eclipse Heucherella. If you keep it in mind, you can try to replicate these conditions at home, and you’ll likely end with a healthier plant.
With this in mind, the Heucherella X ‘Solar Eclipse’ Plant Patent #23,647 will be most used to the heat zones in the 8 – 12 region, as the plant hardiness level falls between 7b, 7a, 8b, 8a, 9b, 9a and the ideal climate zone is between 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, H1, H2.
Growth and Size
Growth
In terms of size and growth, the Solar Eclipse Heucherella is a relatively moderate grower, which makes things somewhat easy for any plant enthusiast.
Size
But what exactly does this mean for your Solar Eclipse Heucherella? How large a pot should you consider, how tall, how wide can it get? Let’s jump in…
The Heucherella X ‘Solar Eclipse’ Plant Patent #23,647 can grow up to 6′ – 15′ (180cm – 4.5m) in 6′ – 15′ (180cm – 4.5m) and 6′ – 10′ (180cm – 3m) in 6′ – 10′ (180cm – 3m).
Water
In terms of watering, the Solar Eclipse Heucherella is a fairly simple plant to take care of.
This is mostly because it has a straightforward watering schedule and somewhat regular watering needs.
Specifically, most experts agree that the Heucherella X ‘Solar Eclipse’ Plant Patent #23,647 prefers constant watering each week and more during the hot season.
Which is why it is considered a plant with relatively low to average needs in terms of water.
Watering
As a rule of thumb, you should remember to keep your Solar Eclipse Heucherella in soil with well-draining characteristics, as these will guarantee the right conditions for your plant to grow and thrive.
When you consider this, this is why you should aim to choose soil that has occasionally wet properties to keep the right moisture levels at all times.
In our experience, the famous ‘thumb’ or ‘finger’ test is what works best for the Solar Eclipse Heucherella since with it, you will be able to give it the right amount of water, every time – regardless of the environment or placement where you do decide to keep it.
Soil Mix
As mentioned earlier, the Solar Eclipse Heucherella prefers to have soil with occasionally wet properties at all times, reason why you need to make the soil mix out of loam.
This is why most experts agree that the Solar Eclipse Heucherella requires soil with high organic matter, and loam (silt), which will give you the right conditions it needs.
In addition to this, expert gardeners recommend having preferably neutral to alkaline soil.
Light and Exposure
In terms of light & exposure, the Solar Eclipse Heucherella requires partial shade to partial sun in order for it to thrive under the right conditions.
Most experts agree that this shrub will do well as long as you keep it in partial to full sun, and it will be able to grow properly.
Specifically, we recommend that you place your Heucherella X ‘Solar Eclipse’ Plant Patent #23,647 in full and direct sun (more than 6 hours of direct sunlight per day).
Season
Being an evergreen plant, the Solar Eclipse Heucherella will be present year round in your garden.
But, you can expect it to have its ‘prime-time’ during the summer (late), and during the fall.
Flowers
You can expect your Solar Eclipse Heucherella to flower around the summer and in the fall months from July to September (summer), and from October to December (fall).
In particular, this shrub is well known for its showy flowers around the plant enthusiast community.
The Solar Eclipse Heucherella produces some beautiful yellow, or pink and white flowers around this time of year.
Foliage
The leaves from the Solar Eclipse Heucherella have a beautiful multicolored color during most of the year.
In particular, they have a compound (pinnately, bipinnately, palmately) arrangement in its leaves.
You can expect the leaves from your Heucherella X ‘Solar Eclipse’ Plant Patent #23,647 to be around (3-6 inches) in size.
Attracts, Tolerance and Resistance
The Solar Eclipse Heucherella is well known for being able to attract butterflies, so keep that in mind when choosing your plant, as you’ll likely end up finding one or another in your garden.
Additionally, it has a special tolerance for drought and animals like deer, so don’t worry if any of these come along, your Heucherella X ‘Solar Eclipse’ Plant Patent #23,647 will be fine.
Garden
How should you then organize your garden to include your new Solar Eclipse Heucherella? Here are some recommendations by expert gardeners.
Most Heucherella X ‘Solar Eclipse’ Plant Patent #23,647 owners agree that this shrub will look great in most cottage, contemporary and rustic gardens of all types.
In particular, the Solar Eclipse Heucherella’s best location within your garden is in beds and borders, and in patio and containers, others use it for landscaping in a container, mass planting, border, edging, or a woodland garden.
Companion Plants
Solar Eclipse Heucherella’s do well with some other plants beside it. One good companion plant is the Astilbe, which will pair up nicely with your leafy friend.
Others consider that a nice Hosta will work well too, so choose whichever you find works best for you!
Conclusion
And we’ve come to an end. Fortunately, that’s everything you need to know about your Solar Eclipse Heucherella to keep it safe and sound in your garden or home. Enjoy planting!
