Choose coral bells by parentage before you buy — villosa heat types for humid summers, classic micrantha such as Palace Purple, or confirm the tag is Heuchera, not Heucherella (foamy bells). A peach leaf and a purple leaf are not interchangeable in July heat.
Choose villosa heat, classic micrantha, or Heucherella
| Factor | Recommended | Avoid |
|---|---|---|
| Hot, humid summer | Villosa parentage (Caramel, Citronelle, Southern Comfort) | A western micrantha sold as a heat plant |
| Classic purple clump | Palace Purple / micrantha | Treating every purple leaf as the same summer plant |
| Silver woodland leaf | Americana types such as Green Spice | Assuming silver overlay means villosa heat |
| Tag says foamy bells | Heucherella — a different hybrid | Buying foamy bells as coral bells |
Know your USDA hardiness zone before you pick a type of coral bells that will take your winter. Type your ZIP below.
2023 USDA ZIP listings (PRISM / USDA-ARS). Find Your USDA Hardiness Zone · Official USDA map.
A peach or lime leaf without villosa in the background is still a gamble in a steamy July, because heat follows parentage, not the color on the tag. [1][2]
What are the types of coral bells?
Start with villosa heat parentage, classic micrantha such as Palace Purple, or americana woodland types. Heucherella is a different hybrid, not a coral bells class.
What is Heuchera villosa?
Hairy alumroot from the southeastern woods — larger, often velvety leaves that take heat and humidity. Caramel, Citronelle, and Southern Comfort are the named heat picks.
Browse by kind
Villosa heat types
Villosa heat types such as Caramel, Citronelle, Southern Comfort, Georgia Peach, and Fire Alarm take humid summers better than western micrantha, with a larger, often velvety leaf and a more open crown. [3] Black Pearl and Silver Gumdrop are sold as villosa hybrids too.
Classic micrantha
Classic micrantha is the ruffled western alumroot. Palace Purple is the trade name most shops still print, and Crevice Alumroot is the straight species when a native nursery has it. Treat them as drainage plants, not as a Southern heat substitute.
Americana and silver woodland
Americana and silver woodland types such as Green Spice carry marbled leaves for cooler, woodland summers. A silver overlay is not villosa heat insurance, so read the series before you plant it in a steamy yard.
Other coral bells
Remaining catalog coral bells such as Obsidian are hybrids that still want part shade and a high crown. Island Alumroot is Heuchera maxima — same genus, a coastal species, not a color group.
Not coral bells — Heucherella, foamflower, and lookalikes
- Heucherella (foamy bells) — Heuchera crossed with Tiarella. The leaf is more dissected and pointed, it wants a bit more moisture and shade, and some kinds trail. [4]
- Tiarella (foamflower) — a cousin with greener, more cut leaves. Same woodland moisture, not a coral bells type.
- Alumroot on a wild tag — still Heuchera, usually americana or villosa. Confirm the Latin so you do not buy a different saxifrage.
What is the difference between Heuchera and Heucherella?
Heucherella is Heuchera crossed with foamflower. The leaf is more cut, it likes a moister, shadier pocket, and it is not genus Heuchera on the tag.
Grow, divide, or pick a leaf color
Once the tag says Heuchera and you know whether you bought heat parentage or a classic purple clump, grow it in part shade with the woody crown at soil level — that method is on How to Grow Coral Bells. Dark, lime, and peach leaves are a separate shopping filter on Colorful Garden Coral Bells, and a woody center splits on Dividing Coral Bells.
Write villosa or Palace Purple on the tag the day you plant, because next July a green flush will not tell you whether humidity will melt it.
FAQ
Are coral bells and alumroot the same?
Yes. Both names are Heuchera. Coral bells is the garden-center name; alumroot is the older common name.
Is leaf color a type?
No. Dark, lime, peach, and silver are a shopping filter, not parentage. See Colorful Garden Coral Bells.
Is Heuchera sanguinea a different type?
It is the southwestern species grown more for red bells than for a foliage color. Most named plants here are hybrids, not a second catalog of flowering coral bells.
Will Palace Purple take a hot, humid summer?
Often less well than a villosa heat type. Palace Purple is the classic micrantha name; Caramel and Citronelle are the named Southern heat picks.
Will a named hybrid come true from seed?
Named clumps such as Palace Purple and Caramel will not match from seed, so buy a labeled plant or divide the clump you already like.
Can I grow Heucherella like Heuchera?
Give it a moister, shadier pocket and confirm the tag says Heucherella. Do not copy a coral bells care card onto foamy bells.
Is Island Alumroot a coral bells?
Yes. It is Heuchera maxima, a coastal species in this genus, not a color group and not Heucherella.
Is Northern Exposure a villosa heat type?
No. That series is an americana woodland group for colder summers. Shop villosa names when humidity is the test.
How many coral bells do we list?
This catalog holds 78 Heuchera names grouped by class. It is not every color at the store.
Related guides
References
- [1] Iowa State Extension -
https://yardandgarden.extension.iastate.edu/article/2021/06/heuchera-or-coral-bells - [2] Clemson HGIC -
https://hgic.clemson.edu/heuchera-coral-bells/ - [3] Garden and Happy -
https://gardenandhappy.com/coral-bells/ - [4] World of Garden Plants -
https://worldofgardenplants.com/whats-the-difference-between-heuchera-and-heucherella/
This note is part of Coral Bells Guides.
More type comparisons by plant are gathered in Types of Plants Guides.
Updated: Reviewed by Bosquelle Editors