I bought two packs of bare roots bleeding hearts from Walmart - the fact that there were ACTUAL healthy looking roots in the packages was amazing in itself - but my question is ... should I start them in pots and let them grow until they are decent sized plants OR should I just plant them right into the soil? Thanks for any info.

I vote for getting them in the ground. Mine are coming up so this might be the perfect time to plant them, especially with it being still early in the season.

I second that!

I third it!

even mine are coming up, so I would say stick 'em in the ground!

Mine are going in the ground this weekend.
I also bought the WM roots.

Afterthought - Keep an eye on nighttime temps. If you're going to get down around 32, you might want to put an empty pot upside down over the newly planted specimens for the night to protect them from frost. They might not be acclimated to cool growing conditions yet.

Shadegardener - good tip! It's supposed to be a lot cooler next week. Even saw something about snow showers
Maybe I will wait til the end of the month to plant them in the ground.

I agree -- that WAS a good thought about them not being acclimated to the cold. While mine are coming up, it's a choice they made on their own...

PAgirl - is the foliage starting to emerge? If so maybe give them a little light but keep the roots cool and moist.
I looked up next week's forecast after I did the last post. 32?! I moved my lemon tree and banana plant outside today because it was so warm and was hoping it would stay at least around 50. No such luck. They'll come back indoors for a while.

Shadegardener, no foliage yet. I can't believe this weather. Today it was 75 degrees! Thursday a mix of wet snow and rain is predicted. I'll never forget one late day in April about 5 years ago we got about a foot of snow. It was just lovely on top of bright yellow forsythia!

We usually get hit in late March with a load of snow but not so much this year. These forecasted low temps are just another reminder of nature's cruelty. Saw today that a couple of my hydrangeas and some pretty hardy roses got hit hard by this past winter. My bleeding hearts are getting ready to bloom so I would be really bummed with more snow.

Cindy, I'd be ready with a bunch of cardboard boxes, if snow is predicted to smush down your spring bulbs and bleeding hearts!

But then, being an Amazon addict . . . I have a large collection of cardboard boxes around at all times.

No snow in our forecast. Mainly a high pressure system coming out of the north. DH just cleared out some big boxes so my bleeding hearts are on their own.