These beauties never fail to lift your spirits because they bloom in late winter and earliest spring, when everything else is blah and gray. While heavy snows can knock them flat, most still manage to rouse themselves and thrust their fat buds determinedly into the frigid air. As soon as things begin to thaw, the flowers open, sometimes with snow still on the ground.
A great deal has been written about hellebores already so I’m not going to repeat it all here. Furthermore, with numerous species and many hybrids on the market these days, it can be quite confusing to keep them all straight.
To simplify things, I’ll cover the two most popular of four main species: Helleborus niger (Christmas rose) and Helleborus orientalis (Lenten rose). Nearly all the hybrids on the market today descend from the latter. The others, Helleborus foetidus or stinking hellebore, and Helleborus argutifolius, Corsican hellebore, are less common and generally shorter lived in our zone. They’re available from specialty growers if you’re interested.
A summary profile chart can be found here.
Why Hellebores?
Hellebores belong to the buttercup family Ranunculaceae and are native to mountainous areas of Turkey and the Caucasus. All parts of the plant are poisonous. They do best in slightly alkaline to neutral, humusy soil in part to full shade, but they’ll grow in slightly acidic soil too. As a carefree groundcover under deciduous trees or in a shady nook, they are unsurpassed problem solvers that will look good year round.
Hellebores are exceptionally handsome with an elegant bearing, at home in every setting from formal to modern. Most cultivars remain evergreen in moderate climates and readily tolerate dry conditions once established, making them extremely useful. Their versatility and impact value when little else is happening botanically (in zone 6 at least) make them highly sought after by professionals and amateurs alike.
Known as the Christmas Rose, Helleborus niger is named for when it blooms. Jacob is the most common cultivar. It blooms prolifically in November through December in zone 7, and in warm autumns, in zone 6 at that time as well. Otherwise it blooms in spring in zone 6. Clumps are bushy and get about 6 – 8 inches tall and wide. The large, pristine white, gold-bossed flowers are outfacing over deep green foliage, making for a lovely display. Jacob looks best massed where it can be prominently admired such as along a walkway, but it will also do nicely in a pot.
The Lenten Rose (Helleborus orientalis) covers a diverse group of subspecies and many hybrids (Helleborus x hybridus) derived from it. These cultivars bloom in late winter and earliest spring over a long period. Decades of breeding has produced an exciting color palate and multiple floral forms. Some have beautifully patterned foliage, too. What’s not to like about that!
Reaching maturity at 12″ to 18″ tall, Lenten hellebore flowers range from cream and apple green suffused with pale pink, through rich pinks, burgundies, yellows, bicolors, speckles and even purple-black. The leathery foliage can be deeply cut, serrated or smooth, some with mottled silver veins. What we call the flowers are actually petal-like sepals surrounding a central boss, one reason they last so long and tolerate freezing temps with ease. Blooms can can be single, double or picotee and markings vary considerably from plant to plant.
Hybrid strains
Every breeder has their own strains and the parentage can get confusing fast. Plants with similar characteristics within a strain are further grouped into series. It’s not necessary to know all the names or parentages. I’m simply mentioning this fact for clarity. Buy whatever strikes your fancy, and don’t worry about the pedigree!
The vast majority of flower forms are nodding or downward facing, although a few of the newer hybrids are outward-facing. This habit helps protect the blooms from water and snow. Expect color intensity to vary with age, soil, and weather conditions. Most flowers remain pert for a long time, gradually dulling and becoming greener as the season progresses. This “washed” or suffused coloring effect is part of their charm. The bees will seek the flowers out, too, since very little else is in bloom.
Flower Girl
Blushing Bridesmaid
Rio Carnival
Penny’s Pink
Pink Frost
Growing Hellebores
Hellebores can be sited under deciduous trees and shrubs in part to full shade or dappled light, along a north or east facing foundation, anywhere you want an attractive low planting that’s not particularly sunny. Morning sun is fine but not hot afternoon sun in summer. Soil should be neutral to slightly alkaline, rich in organic matter and well-draining. They do not like wet feet and resent being moved. In their native habitats, hellebores are often found on shady slopes.
Because the flowers often face downward, if you have a good spot above a retaining wall or on a bank that rises above eye level, you’ll be able to better view the flowers in bloom from below.
I made the mistake of planting my hellebore plugs under a mature spruce tree (which needs acidic soil), requiring me to top-dress them with a bit of lime every year. They’re doing okay, but the location is not optimal and as a result, they are taking a little longer to establish. Lesson learned! Even so, they’re coming along nicely. This was their second summer and about half bloomed this past spring. I’m hoping they all or mostly bloom in spring 2022!
Update as of 2023: They are filling in beautifully, as seen in the photo below right, taken in spring 2023. Compare to when they were plugs, left!
While summer sun will burn hellebores, winter and spring sun before the trees leaf out is perfectly fine. Situate them massed on their own or pair with shade-tolerant bulbs, small hostas, carex, creeping phlox, cyclamen, liriope and the like. Under flowering shrubs is another good spot. The emerging foliage will hide any dying bulb leaves.
Some of the yellow-flowered strains have yellow-green foliage as opposed to the darker greens of other cultivars. That’s their natural color and not a sign of disease. (Speaking of which, all hellebores are seldom bothered by disease, other than an uncommon virus called “black death” transmitted by aphids, and occasional fungal blight.)
Buying Helleboes
Potted hellebores in flower from a retail nursery are notoriously expensive, anywhere from $12 to $25 each. To ensure you’re getting the precise coloration you want, it’s best to buy flowering specimens. However, sale plants that have finished flowering or are past their prime foliage display can be a good buy if you’re less fussy about the exact shade. I’ve bought quite a few lovely ones this way.
Tip: Buy in Bulk and Save — If you want to establish a colony, buying in bulk by mail is the way to go. A tray of 6 plugs was $20 from the grower I purchased my plugs from in 2021. That’s just $3.33 each! Yes, you will have to wait a year or two for flowers, but it’s well worth it when you’re planting a couple dozen!
Care and Maintenance
Once established, hellebores are long-lived, tough and carefree. They don’t need fertilizer beyond a top dressing of compost or leaf mould in fall. If you feel they really need a boost, use a long-acting organic, granular fertilizer applied in March or late summer; avoid chemical fertilizers which can burn. Hellebores prefer dry conditions in summer, so there’s no need to water them unless they’re still establishing. Other than occasional fungal blights in muggy conditions and possibly aphids, hellebores are remarkably disease resistant.
Hellebores generally spread quite slowly. Many hybrids don’t produce seed at all. But some do, and fertile hellebores can produce seedlings that do not come true. Species hellebores interplanted with hybrids need to be deadheaded if you want to preserve distinct colors and forms. Or let them crossbreed naturally and enjoy the reverting forms. They will still be beautiful, just much more subtle and you’ll lose some of the more vibrant coloring created from commercial hybridization.
While the leaves attempt to stay evergreen all winter, many get burned by freezing temps. Trim tattered foliage before the buds emerge; otherwise the old leaves spoil the show. That means in mid-winter or even late fall, cutting it away before it turns ratty. If you wait, it’s all too easy to accidentally cut the emerging flower stems by mistake. (Trust me, I’ve done it!) That’s it for care. What could be easier?
Planting a large clump of hellebores is without question an investment in your landscape and wallet. But when they burst into glorious bloom in frothy elegance while everything else is still asleep, it’s one you’ll be very glad you made. Hellebores will repay you many times over. They are joyful, beautiful, and easy care.
Needless to say, I give hellebores a five-star rating!
