WateringTimesWatering plan, $19
Bergenia ciliata, WUCOLS IV

How often to water frilly bergenia in California

In July on the north-central coast, established frilly bergenia in loam needs a deep watering about every 9 days: about 1.5 gallons each time for a plant 2 feet across, about 1.1 gallons a week. Frilly bergenia is a semi-deciduous perennial from Nepal with big, rounded, dark green leaves up to 10 inches long, softly hairy on both sides and carried on reddish stalks. In spring and summer, pale pink flowers flushed with rose open on short arching stems. Deer and rabbits seem to leave it alone.

PerennialRated for 3 of 6 zones

How often to water frilly bergenia, month by month

Your city
Plant width
2 ft
Your soil

Type your city above and the days between waterings and the gallons appear here, worked out from your city's climate table. Or read the figures by climate zone further down.

Every month, on your water days. The personal plan prints this for frilly bergenia and the rest of your yard, on the days your water supplier allows.Get the plan for $19

How this is worked out: established roots fill the top 1 foot of soil, and you water again when that soil has dried halfway. Loam soil holds about 1.5 inches of water per foot. Water the whole area the plant covers, and skip a watering after a good soaking rain.

Which soil do you have?

Dig down a few inches, take a handful of moist soil and squeeze it.

  • Sandy: gritty, falls apart when you open your hand, will not form a ball.
  • Loam: forms a soft ball that crumbles when you poke it.
  • Clay: forms a firm, sticky ball and squeezes out into a ribbon between thumb and finger.

Still not sure? Pick loam. Most garden beds sit between sand and clay.

How to measure plant width

A shrub with its width marked from one side to the other and the circle under it shaded blue

Measure across the plant, from the tips of the leaves on one side to the tips on the other.

Water the whole area the plant covers, shown in blue. The gallons here cover that area.

A wider plant means more gallons each watering, not more waterings. While it is young, measure again each spring.

How to tell it needs water

  • Soil drying fully under the leaves in summer means frilly bergenia has gone too dry
  • Big leaves wilting by afternoon point to a dry root zone or too much sun
  • Speckled, pale leaves point to greenhouse thrips, not water
  • Young leaves blackened after a frost point to cold damage

How to water it

  • Water occasionally, never letting the soil dry out completely
  • Plant in coastal sun, part sun or light shade
  • Use fertile soil, or heavy clay if that is what you have
  • Protect new spring growth from frost
  • Check leaves for thrips in warm weather

Through the seasons

Water new plants regularly until they settle. Established clumps want occasional water that keeps the soil from drying out fully, more in hot weather. Flowers come in spring and summer, and leaves may thin in winter. Frost can damage flowers and young leaves. WUCOLS rates frilly bergenia moderate water on the north-central coast, on the south coast and in South Inland. WUCOLS has not evaluated it for the Central Valley, the high desert or the low desert.

In pots

Frilly bergenia makes a handsome pot plant for a lightly shaded patio, where its fuzzy, rounded leaves invite a touch. Use a fertile, well-drained mix. Water when the top inch dries, until it drains through, and never let it dry out fully. In summer, check every couple of days. Empty the saucer after watering. In winter, water when the mix dries between rains.

1 Your climate zone six WUCOLS zones, each from its own reference city
Not ratedWUCOLS does not rate Frilly Bergenia for the Central Valley zone
A year
no figure
Reference
Sacramento climate table
Counts
Plant need, before sprinkler losses

WUCOLS lists Frilly Bergenia as not evaluated for the Central Valley zone, so no monthly figure is computed here.

Monthly water need by climate zone

Frilly Bergenia: gallons per square foot per month, by WUCOLS climate zone

MonthN. CoastC. ValleyS. CoastS. InlandHi DesertLo Desert
Jan0.37–0.780.78––
Feb0.53–0.810.87––
Mar0.87–1.151.3––
Apr1.18–1.41.61––
May1.46–1.611.95––
Jun1.61–1.742.29––
Jul1.61–1.982.51––
Aug1.49–1.862.33––
Sep1.24–1.491.86––
Oct0.87–1.151.33––
Nov0.47–0.840.9––
Dec0.31–0.650.68––
Year12–15.518.41––

How this is worked out: the WUCOLS water rating for each zone times that zone’s climate for the month. A dash means WUCOLS does not rate the plant there. The figures are what the plant uses, before sprinkler losses.

Plants with the same water needs 16

Rated not evaluated in the Central Valley, like frilly bergenia. Plants that drink alike can share one valve and one schedule.

Lilyleaf LadybellsAdenophora liliifolianot rated, Central Valleyno Central Valley ratingArnicaArnica montananot rated, Central Valleyno Central Valley ratingCabbage on a StickBrighamia insignisnot rated, Central Valleyno Central Valley ratingBasket PlantCallisia fragransnot rated, Central Valleyno Central Valley ratingForest SedgeCarex sylvaticanot rated, Central Valleyno Central Valley ratingUmbrella DracaenaDianella ensifolianot rated, Central Valleyno Central Valley ratingRusty FoxgloveDigitalis ferrugineanot rated, Central Valleyno Central Valley ratingBig-Flowered FoxgloveDigitalis grandifloranot rated, Central Valleyno Central Valley ratingWoolly FoxgloveDigitalis lanatanot rated, Central Valleyno Central Valley ratingSunset FoxgloveDigitalis obscuranot rated, Central Valleyno Central Valley ratingMale FernDryopteris filix-masnot rated, Central Valleyno Central Valley ratingAlpine Sea HollyEryngium alpinumnot rated, Central Valleyno Central Valley ratingPurple SpurgeEuphorbia dulcisnot rated, Central Valleyno Central Valley ratingQueen of the MeadowFilipendula ulmarianot rated, Central Valleyno Central Valley ratingDropwortFilipendula vulgaris (Filipendula hexapetala)not rated, Central Valleyno Central Valley ratingGentianGentiana scabra procumbensnot rated, Central Valleyno Central Valley rating
Minutes for your sprinklers

Turn this into minutes on your water days

Every city page has a calculator that takes frilly bergenia, your sprinkler type and the month, and gives the minutes per water day for that supplier's schedule. Or put it in a zone of the personal watering plan and get all twelve months printed.

Questions people ask

How often should I water frilly bergenia in summer?

In July, established frilly bergenia in loam needs a deep watering about every 7 days on the south coast and about every 6 days in the South Inland zone. Sandy soil holds less water, so waterings come closer together. Clay stretches them. Check the soil before each watering and skip one after a soaking rain.

How much water does frilly bergenia need per day?

In July on the north-central coast, established frilly bergenia needs about 0.2 gallons a day for a plant 2 feet across and about 0.7 gallons a day for a plant 4 feet across. Give it in deep waterings spread days apart rather than a little every day, so the whole root zone gets wet.

Does watering for frilly bergenia change across California?

Yes. WUCOLS rates frilly bergenia separately for each of the six California climate zones: moderate water in the North-Central Coastal zone, not evaluated in the Central Valley zone, moderate water in the South Coastal zone, moderate water in the South Inland zone, not evaluated in the High and Intermediate Desert zone, not evaluated in the Low Desert zone. The monthly table above shows how the same rating translates into different gallon amounts as reference evapotranspiration changes.

Is frilly bergenia evergreen?

It is semi-deciduous and may lose some leaves in winter. New leaves return in spring. Frost can harm them.

Can frilly bergenia grow in shade?

It succeeds in shade or semi-shade, though its leaves look best with some sun. Coastal sun is fine. Inland, give it light shade.

Do deer eat frilly bergenia?

It seems to be immune to rabbits and deer. That makes it useful in exposed gardens. Watch for thrips instead.

Can frilly bergenia grow in clay?

It prefers fertile soil but tolerates heavy clay. Do not let clay dry out completely. Mulch helps.

When does frilly bergenia bloom?

Pale pink flowers open in spring and summer. They face up and out on short stems. Frost can damage early flowers.

More plant watering guides

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Sources