04 Hellebore

I'm a bit late with my offering for 'Flowering in my garden...' this week, but it is worth the wait. One of my favourite plants of the spring is the Hellebore. Regular readers will know that I have been adding to my collection this year and have 4 more than this time last year. Last year I planted them at the end of February and they are back!

This one came from my Mum as a seedling and is the spiky leaved Hellebore argutifolius or holly leaved Hellebore. This is a large Hellebore which can get to 1m tall and has dark leaves and clusters of pale green flowers. It is the earliest to flower of the Hellebores in my garden and a lovely sight in mid January.

One of the things that appeals to me about the Hellebore is the huge number of hybrids: single, double, tall, short, dark metallic blues, pale pinks, rich purples, pure whites and fresh yellows, speckled, veined, and plain!

This is my beautiful speckled, pale pink, single Hellebore. It has tall stems of about 12" which means you can see the flowers well, and gorgeous fat buds that promise so much.

My Bosvigo Double, with fantastic veining on the petals, is another taller Hellebore with large dark leaves. It's only just opening and there are numerous tall stems with tufts of paler leaves and buds just waiting for a warmer day when they will burst forth with stunning pagoda like blooms.

The white Hellebore (Jayne gave me this one), is much more like the woodland plant that one imagines the wild Hellebore would be. It is short, only 3" high and has lovely pure white flowers. The white Hellebore or Helleborus niger is also known as the Christmas rose, so much nicer as a festive flower than the Poinsettia which seems to have become the go-to Christmas plant. If you have your Helleborous niger in a pot and bring it in before Christmas it will encourage it to flower earlier. 

And this is the trusty single, dark purple Hellebore that I started my collection with. This one has travelled from London with me and loves it's spot on the rockery, seeds freely and I have seedlings to transfer to other parts of the garden. When the leaves first show with the buds they are the loveliest bronze shade which looks so rich with the purple. 

Hellebores are hardy and easy to grow. They like semi shaded places that don't dry out, fertile soil and are evergreen. It is an idea to remove all of last years leaves just after Christmas so that as the flowers and new foliage come through you can see them better. It also helps to prevent disease and removes a great hiding place for slugs!

This year I am coveting a pale yellow and a metallic blue Hellebore for my new shady bed, and the perfect purchasing moment is coming up. Bosvigo Gardens in Truro have a charity fund raising Hellebore Day every year and sell a fabulous selection of plants all bred and raised in Truro. My double and speckled pink both came from there last year and have done very well.

This years Hellebore Day is on Saturday February 22nd 9.30am - 4pm. 

It's worth getting there early for the best selection and you also get to look round the inspiring and uplifting spring garden, perfect for reminding yourself what spring looks like!

Last years spring garden looked like this.

Whether you are a Hellebore fan or not it's definitely worth a visit!