My heucheras are slowly coming back to life after what seems to be a very late spring. I like these easy-care perennials because they hold onto their attractive ruffled foliage well into December — even later in some winters.

Year after year, Terra Nova Nurseries comes out with bigger and brighter heucheras for home gardeners. This spring, gardeners are welcoming a new variety called ‘Southern Comfort’ into their perennial beds. It offers huge cinnamon-peach leaves and a lush growing habit.

Over the course of the seasons, the foliage color changes from cinnamon peach to burnished copper to amber. Creamy white flowers arrive in late summer.

This new variety from Terra Nova, which is based in Canby, Ore., has been bred to do well in humid weather. It’s hardy to USDA Zone 4.

Known more commonly as coral bells or alum root, heucheras have been best friends with shade gardeners for many years. Within a year or two, ‘Southern Comfort’ will form a dense clump that measures 24 inches wide and 14 inches tall.

Heucheras are not particularly fussy about garden soil, but they do need water in periods of drought. They are supposed to be somewhat deer resistant, but I wish someone would tell that to the deer that took most of mine right down to the ground last month.

Look for ‘Southern Comfort’ in the better nurseries and garden centers (or online, of course).