Heavenly Hellebore

Helleborus orientalis 'Lenten Rose'

In late January, when the garden is cold and somewhat dreary, hellebores push up through the soil.  These beautiful five-petaled flowers hang from the tops of tall, green stalks.  They begin blooming in late January and continue through March--right when we need some flowers and color in the garden the most!

The blooms tend to hang down much like a fuchsia blossom, but their flower faces are so pretty, you will want to take a closer look.  The best way to enjoy them indoors is to snip off a few flowers and float them in a bowl of water.

Hellebores massed on top of a rock wall--just getting started in early February

Hellebores massed along a walkway in early March

Hellebores naturalize when they are happy, and they are very happy in the Northwest garden.  They like partial shade and tolerate our wet winters and dry summers with relative ease.  The orientalis variety is the most common and is very easy to grow.  And so far they have managed to avoid being a part of the deer diet; but this of course, could change at any time!  The only pest problem I've experienced is a tendency to attract aphids in the summer. 

The orientalis variety comes in shades of white, pink and purple.

I like to mix hellebores with ferns, camellias, rhododendrons, sarcococca, astilbe and primroses.  They are a beautiful addition to the woodland garden and the star of the late winter garden show.