Golden Acre Home & Garden Centre's Plant Library

Other Names:  Bush Cinquefoil, Shrubby Cinquefoil

Group/Class:  Happy Face Series

Brand:  Proven Winners

Description:

Presenting extra large, bright pink flowers with white centers from spring to frost; this stunning variety is also very tough and hardy and will survive challenging locations; great for mass plantings

Ornamental Features

Happy Face Hearts® Potentilla has pink flowers with rose overtones, chartreuse eyes and white centers at the ends of the branches from late spring to mid fall, which emerge from distinctive red flower buds. It has dark green deciduous foliage. The small fuzzy ferny compound leaves do not develop any appreciable fall colour.

Landscape Attributes

Happy Face Hearts® Potentilla is a dense multi-stemmed deciduous shrub with a more or less rounded form. Its relatively fine texture sets it apart from other landscape plants with less refined foliage.

This is a relatively low maintenance shrub, and is best pruned in late winter once the threat of extreme cold has passed. It is a good choice for attracting butterflies to your yard, but is not particularly attractive to deer who tend to leave it alone in favor of tastier treats. It has no significant negative characteristics.

Happy Face Hearts® Potentilla is recommended for the following landscape applications;

• Mass Planting
• Border Edging
• General Garden Use
• Groundcover
• Container Planting

Planting & Growing

Happy Face Hearts® Potentilla will grow to be about 24 inches tall at maturity, with a spread of 24 inches. It tends to fill out right to the ground and therefore doesn't necessarily require facer plants in front. It grows at a slow rate, and under ideal conditions can be expected to live for approximately 30 years.

This shrub does best in full sun to partial shade. It is very adaptable to both dry and moist locations, and should do just fine under typical garden conditions. It is considered to be drought-tolerant, and thus makes an ideal choice for a low-water garden or xeriscape application. This plant does not require much in the way of fertilizing once established. It is not particular as to soil type or pH. It is highly tolerant of urban pollution and will even thrive in inner city environments. This is a selection of a native North American species.

Happy Face Hearts® Potentilla makes a fine choice for the outdoor landscape, but it is also well-suited for use in outdoor pots and containers. It can be used either as 'filler' or as a 'thriller' in the 'spiller-thriller-filler' container combination, depending on the height and form of the other plants used in the container planting. It is even sizeable enough that it can be grown alone in a suitable container. Note that when grown in a container, it may not perform exactly as indicated on the tag - this is to be expected. Also note that when growing plants in outdoor containers and baskets, they may require more frequent waterings than they would in the yard or garden. Be aware that in our climate, most plants cannot be expected to survive the winter if left in containers outdoors, and this plant is no exception. Contact our experts for more information on how to protect it over the winter months.