Some of my favorite spring flowers are the various varieties of bleeding hearts – and Green Spring Gardens in Alexandria Virginia is my favorite place to photograph them.

Bleeding hearts are members of the Fumariaceae family – native to Asia and North America. Each flower has two sepals and four petals. The outer two petals are spurred – while the inner petals are straight. This combination of petals gives some of the flowers a heart-shape – where the common name Bleeding Hearts comes from.

When people think of Bleeding Heart flowers – they usually think of the little heart-shaped pink flowers that are native to Asia. The botanical name for these bleeding hearts is dicentra spectabilis.

© 2012 Patty Hankins

© 2012 Patty Hankins

© 2012 Patty Hankins

© 2012 Patty Hankins

Another variety with heart-shaped flowers are the White Bleeding Hearts – dicentra spectibilis Alba – also native to Asia.

© 2012 Patty Hankins

And finally – one of my favorites – the bleeding hearts that are native to the Eastern United States – dicentra eximia

© 2012 Patty Hankins