Plant Library

Other Names:  Peltiphyllum peltatum, Indian Rhubarb, Giant Cup

Description:

Large leaves add coarse texture to garden, turn reddish in fall; pink to white flower spikes appear before the leaves; must keep moist if planting in full sun, to reduce scorched foliage water regularly throughout the season

Ornamental Features

Umbrella Plant features subtle balls of shell pink star-shaped flowers with red eyes at the ends of the stems in early spring before the leaves. Its attractive enormous serrated round leaves are emerald green in color. As an added bonus, the foliage turns a gorgeous red in the fall.

Landscape Attributes

Umbrella Plant is a dense herbaceous perennial with a rigidly upright and towering form. Its wonderfully bold, coarse texture can be very effective in a balanced garden composition.

This plant will require occasional maintenance and upkeep, and is best cleaned up in early spring before it resumes active growth for the season. Deer don't particularly care for this plant and will usually leave it alone in favor of tastier treats. It has no significant negative characteristics.

Umbrella Plant is recommended for the following landscape applications;

• Accent
• Mass Planting
• Border Edging
• General Garden Use
• Naturalizing And Woodland Gardens
• Herb Gardens
• Container Planting
• Bog Gardens

Planting & Growing

Umbrella Plant will grow to be about 3 feet tall at maturity extending to 4 feet tall with the flowers, with a spread of 4 feet. Its foliage tends to remain dense right to the ground, not requiring facer plants in front. It grows at a medium rate, and under ideal conditions can be expected to live for approximately 10 years. As an herbaceous perennial, this plant will usually die back to the crown each winter, and will regrow from the base each spring. Be careful not to disturb the crown in late winter when it may not be readily seen!

This plant does best in full sun to partial shade. It is quite adaptable, prefering to grow in average to wet conditions, and will even tolerate some standing water. It is not particular as to soil type or pH. It is somewhat tolerant of urban pollution. This species is native to parts of North America.

Umbrella Plant is a fine choice for the garden, but it is also a good selection for planting in outdoor pots and containers. With its upright habit of growth, it is best suited for use as a 'thriller' in the 'spiller-thriller-filler' container combination; plant it near the center of the pot, surrounded by smaller plants and those that spill over the edges. It is even sizeable enough that it can be grown alone in a suitable container. Note that when growing plants in outdoor containers and baskets, they may require more frequent waterings than they would in the yard or garden.