How to Grow and Care for Love-Lies-Bleeding

Love-lies-bleeding (Amaranthus caudatus) usually has tiny blood-red, petal-free flowers. Blooms form narrowly, drooping tassel-like, terminal panicles throughout the growing season. Also called tassel flower, flowering occurs from mid-to-late summer and may also produce purple or gold flowers on flower strands hanging 12 to 24 inches long. Love-lies-bleeding has iconic red or pale green foliage and thrives in full to partial sun conditions, growing up to 5 feet tall. Its ideal conditions are moist, acidic soil and temperatures above 40 degrees Fahrenheit.

Benefits and Uses

Love-lies-bleeding seeds are edible and grown as a grain crop in parts of South America. It is also used in Africa to make beer, porridge, flour, and sprouted seeds are used as a vegetable in Peru and Ethiopia. It is gluten-free. Everlasting flowers retain their color and can be dried and included in attractive arrangements.

Love-Lies-Bleeding Care

Here are the main care requirements for growing a love-lies-bleeding:

• Likes full to partial sun.
• Needs moist, well-drained, acidic soil, although it is drought-tolerant once established.
• Dies with frost and temperatures below 40 degrees Fahrenheit.
• Can grow in poor soil and grows larger with compost enrichment.
  

Light

Position in full sun to part shade after the soil has warmed. The sun-loving plant thrives in quite warm weather and will not grow in full shade, but it does appreciate afternoon shade in exceptionally hot summer climates.

Soil

Grow love-lies-bleeding in mildly acidic soil of a pH between 5.5 to 6.5. While it grows well in average, well-draining, and well-fertilized soils, some gardeners say it has the best color when planted in poor soil. Any light (sandy), medium (loamy), or heavy (clay) soil will do. If fertilizing the plant, use only organic fertilizer.

Water

This fairly drought-resistant plant still benefits from good watering practice. Seeds require balanced moisture levels. Then, until seedlings are established and growing actively, they still require evenly moist soil. Once established, the love-lies-bleeding plant needs little attention.

Temperature and Humidity

Plants are not frost-hardy. The most cold-tolerant Amaranthus cultivars can tolerate temperatures below 40 degrees Fahrenheit. It may last as a perennial in areas with no frost. Love-lies-bleeding is sensitive to the length of the day and does not perform well in northern latitudes. Germination happens quickly in warm soil.

Fertilizer

Fertilizers are not necessary for love-lies-bleeding. If you have poor soil, use organic fertilizer options like fish emulsion, worm castings, or compost.

Types of Love-Lies-Bleeding

The Amaranthus genus has at least 60 annual and perennial species that easily cross-breed and hybridize. Love-lies-bleeding foliage often comes in an attractive pale green. The love-lies-bleeding Amaranthus cultivar 'Tricolor' has multi-colored foliage and is sometimes called 'Joseph's Coat. ''Viridis' and 'Green Thumb' cultivars have green tassels. Here are a few other varieties:

• 'Coral Fountain' has wooly, pink, or blush flowers that cascade like a waterfall. This heirloom variety blooms mid to late summer until the first frost and mingles well in bouquets. Growing 3 to 5 feet tall, it thrives in full sun in USDA Zones 2 through 11.
• 'Dreadlocks' has magenta-colored blooms and sturdy stems. Blooming from late summer to fall, it grows a humble 3 to 4 feet tall. Like 'Coral Fountain,' 'Dreadlocks' is hardy in USDA Zones 2 through 11.
• 'Fat Spike' are 3 to 4 feet tall with thick, erect spikes of deep reddish purple rising above the medium green foliage.
• 'Golden Giant' has thick, pendulous flower stalks with golden flowers on 4-foot-tall plants.
  

Pruning

If the plant stalks become floppy during the growing season, provide support with garden stakes. Remove damaged or diseased leaves, stems, or flowers with clean shears.

Propagating Love-Lies-Bleeding

To make more plants, you can sow seeds or root cuttings. Here's how to propagate by cuttings:

1. You will need scissors or pruners to snip off a healthy, 4-inch long stem with two to four leaves.
2. Bury the bottom 2 inches in a new planting site or a container with fresh potting soil or soilless media like perlite and vermiculite.
3. Keep the soil watered and moist.
   

How to Grow Love-Lies-Bleeding From Seed

This self-fertile species is monoecious, meaning its flowers are male or female, while both sexes can be found on a single plant, and the wind pollinates it. Growing from seed is fast; it averages about 60 to 110 days from sowing to harvest. Seeds will only germinate between 40 and 95 degrees Fahrenheit; the ideal temperature range is 68 to 70 F. Harvest the seeds just before the plant matures to avoid losing any seeds. Here's how to sow the seeds:

1. After the last frost, sow seeds directly outdoors and space them 18 to 24 inches apart.
2. Start seeds indoors 6 to 8 weeks before the last frost date, then harden off plants just after the last frost date.
3. Space smaller varieties eight to 12 inches apart and larger ones up to 18 inches apart. It can take three to five days to sprout.
   

Potting and Repotting

Love-lies-bleeding produces pendulous flowers that display beautifully from hanging baskets. However, amaranth plants have long roots, so larger containers are best.

Love-lies-bleeding grows smaller in containers, so expect it to grow about 3 feet tall. It which will do best in a large, heavy container like a 10-gallon container. Since it only lives one growing season, it will not need repotting. Use well-draining potting soil and make sure the container has ample drainage holes.

Overwintering

Love-lies-bleeding is an annual plant and will die with frost and cold temperatures. However, it self-seeds readily, and you will likely see new plants in the spring if you allow your previous season's plant to go to seed.

Common Pests and Diseases

A. caudatus is relatively pest-free, but you must watch for aphids, Japanese beetles, snails, and slugs. Remove the pests with steady streams of water, insecticidal soap, or neem oil. You can also handpick beetles, snails, and slugs.

Beware of root rot in poorly drained soils and fungal leaf spot diseases. These are best prevented by providing good air circulation and watering at the soil line versus overhead watering.

How to Get Love-Lies-Bleeding to Bloom

Love-lies-bleeding is a reliable bloomer, but depending on your climate, it might need up to 110 days to bloom.

Bloom Months

Love-lies-bleeding generally begins blooming in July.

How Long Does Love-Lies-Bleeding Bloom?

Love-lies-bleeding blooms last from mid-summer until first frost.

What Do Love-Lies-Bleeding Flowers Look and Smell Like?

Love-lies-bleeding flowers produce long, deeply colored red, purple, golden, and green floral panicles or ropes. They have no discernible scent.

How to Encourage More Blooms

You can remove faded love-lies-bleeding floral panicles to encourage more blooms.

Deadheading Love-Lies-Bleeding Flowers

In addition to encouraging the production of more floral sprays, deadheading also removes the risk of the plant self-seeding.

Common Problems With Love-Lies-Bleeding

Love-lies-bleeding is an easy-to-grow, low-maintenance plant with very few issues or problems.

Plant Not Growing

Love-lies-bleeding grows slowly at first. It germinates quickly but then slows down. It may seem that the plant is not growing or growing very slowly—which is normal and not a sign of distress. By the time the plant reaches one foot, growth speeds up.

Wilting

An established love-lies-bleeding plant is drought tolerant but still requires water. If the leaves are wilting or drying out, the plant likely needs deep watering to bring it back to life.