Q: In my grandmother’s rock garden there is a plant that has a cluster of pink blooms atop a thick stem. It always flowers in early spring, about the time the daffodils bloom. It has big rounded leaves all year. She does not remember what it is called. Do you know the name, and can I take cuttings of her plants now?

M.B.: Sounds like bergenia, a tough perennial that blooms even in the shade and is evergreen in our area. You can divide the older mother plants into side shoots to take home any time in early spring before the plant blooms. Fall is also a good time to take starts of bergenia. I have to confess I once gossiped cruelly about this hard-working plant because I never saw one that didn’t have ugly leaves riddled with slug holes. Now I have matured, slug baits have improved and I think bergenia is the perfect perennial for low-maintenance rock gardens because the large leaves help crowd out weeds.

source : seattlepi.nwsource.com