HELLES BELLES
FOR a mid-winter pick me up, include hellebores in your garden or window boxes.
At this time of year they are starting to flower and will continue to do so throughout the depths of the season.
They are also known as the Christmas rose or Lenten rose as this marks the period many of them are in flower.
While they are not related to roses (they’re a member of the larger buttercup family) the flowers do have something of the appearance of a wild rose flower with simple bowl-shaped blossoms and prominent yellow stamens.
With most varieties, the flowers are gently nodding so one of the best ways to really appreciate their beauty is to cut a few and float them upwards in a bowl of water.
They are a really useful shade plant as they’re relatively trouble free, have good looking evergreen foliage, and bloom at a time when flowers are few and far between.
Their preferred soil is rich, moisture retentive and fertile, and one that neither gets too dry nor waterlogged.
Improve your soil if necessary with the addition of compost or well-rotted manure to provide a rich planting hole.
Somewhere near the house is a good spot so you can admire them without venturing out into the cold.
Alternatively plant up containers and pots using a rich loambased compost.
I grow them beneath my birch trees and they mix well in the spring garden with fellow early flowerers such as snowdrops, primula and woodland anemone, as well as other shade lovers such as ferns and hostas.
Maintenance is usually confined to this time of year when I remove some of the older leathery foliage which is going off and could harbour diseases. I also want the upcoming flowers to be more visible.
All parts are poisonous, so wear gloves when handling hellebores as the sap can be a skin irritant.
Over the next few months is the best time to go shopping for them while they are in flower so you can choose the colour and size that appeals most.
Many of the hybrids are derived from Helleborus orientalis and there is now a good choice of flower colours from cream to dusky purple, blush apricots and pinks, green and white, as well as rich reds and maroons. ‘Harvington
Shades of the Night’ is a beauty with dark purple-black flowers and
I also like the pristine white of Helleborus niger.
There are more elaborate varieties with fuller frillier flowers such as ‘Double Ellen Picotee’ which has ruffled flowers spotted and edged in pink.
For something quite different, look out for ‘Golden Lotus’ a gorgeous double variety with yellow petals, also edged in pink.
This winter treasure is also a valuable source of nectar and pollen, so by planting a hellebore you’ll be giving nature a helping hand as well.