The month of February is well known for it’s snowdrops, but also flowering now and for the next month or so, are the beautiful hellebores. They come in such a variety of colours and shapes these days, you must see them in flower when you buy, then you know exactly what you are getting. They haven’t enjoyed the frosty mornings that we have had at times during February, but once the temperature rises, the stems come back to vertical and the flowers look beautiful once more. This photo was taken last year, I don’t have enough flowers out on each plant yet to be able to cut some to bring indoors!
Lots of buds here, should look good in a week or so. This is one where about 3 crosses have been made to produce a wonderful plant.
Here we have one that was flowering long before Christmas and I was worrying that it wouldn’t flower again at the proper time, I needn’t have worried, it was determined to join the party!
A lovely tiny double hellebore with tiny flowers in proportion with the plant.
A very large single whose flower doesn’t hang demurely but stares straight at you, the jury is out on this one, I think I prefer them to be a bit more demure and not so large!
Just a bit longer to wait to see the beautiful double flowers of this dark plum / almost black hellebore, so beautiful.
This is one of half a dozen seedlings bought from Denman’s garden a few years ago. The flowers are just plain pink but it is forming a lovely sturdy plant.
Cream or pale yellow flowers show up well in dark corners of the woodland.
I think the anemone centred hellebores are my favourites, love this one with its white flower and burgundy centre.
The spotting on these petals is very attractive.
The species, H. argutifolius has been planted in a sunny spot in the woodland as it comes from the hillsides of Majorca, it seems happy!
Double pink, I seem to have rather a lot of pink ones!
Spotted ones are very attractive, no matter what colour they are.
Some have more spots than others.
But plain simple ones are still beautiful, don’t you think?
They are all beautiful and so welcome at this time of year when most other plants are hiding from the weather.
My absolute all time favourite, just look at that central ruff, just like an Elizabethan dandy!
Very pretty, very dainty, lovely flower.
This one has a double white inside, but is pale pink on the outside, very pretty indeed.
There are so many combinations of colour, spotting, doubles or singles, picotee or anemone centred, that we are spoilt for choice, how do you choose? You have to choose for yourself, no good asking someone else to buy them for you, that would be like arranging a blind date! Hellebore time is with us once more, so let’s celebrate by buying a couple more for the garden!
I never think of cutting hellebores for the house. We have plenty and they would be easier to admire.Some of your macro shots are wonderful Pauline. The petals have such delicate markings.
I’ve read that they flop if cut the same as other flowers Janet, so floating the heads in a bowl means that you can see their lovely faces. I only cut one from each when there are lots of flowers on each plant as generally I think flowers look better in the garden!
How beautiful the one with the “elizabethan ruff” is. I adore Hellebores, and have enjoyed seeing your images of them – you have quite a variety in your garden Pauline.
K
Hellebores are so good at brightening up a dull February day aren’t they Karen, the wind is blowing at the moment and the rain lashing down, but the hellebores are taking it all in their stride – wonderful!
They’re stunning, Pauline. I have some white spotted ones, some pinkish ones and a lovely dark plum coloured one but they’ve only been in a few years and haven’t really bulked up yet. I think they’re a very addictive plant with so many different ones available. I love the one with the ruff, very unusual .
So glad you like the one with the ruff WW, still waiting for it to bulk up though, it’s taking it’s time! They are so tempting whenever I see any at the garden centre or nursery, have to be stong willed these days as I really have enough!!
Love the hellebore.
I really dislike the “cut flower” concept… ever… I made an exception when I needed a single bloom severed from the plant to make a point on my plant id post.
After getting the pic, the bloom sat in a saucer of water for a week! Pretty good for a cut flower… and much longer than the bloom stem and leaf that also got the cut-flower treatment after breaking off during a transplanting session…
I actually prefer the larger blooms, I’m not sure how easily size can be selected for when (in my garden) soil fertility seems to affect the bloom size as much as genetics.
Glad there is someone else that doesn’t like cutting his flowers Stone! The flower heads do last such a long time when floated don’t they, and look like miniature water lilies! Most of my hellebores are in a woodland situation so I think the smaller ones look more natural, maybe the larger flowers have H. niger in their ancestry? Could see them looking good in a formal area, in a pot maybe?
The one with the double ruff is truly gorgeous! I appreciate hellebore blooms for their varying patterns and color combinations, though they often are subtle and demand close observation for full appreciation. Your collection is fabulous. I don’t have any double ones, but now I really want some!
Doubles are lovely Debs, but so are singles, I love them all !!! The one with the double ruff, anemone centred, is especially pretty, it’s hard but I do try not to have favourites!
so many beautiful blooms Pauline, Frances
Thanks Frances, love this time of year when everything is waking up again.
I think the best of all is h. argutifolius, I love its leaves that hold up very well even during hot summer in full sun. Your hellebores are one better than the other though: especially the dark one and the plain creamy green one.
It’s very hard not to have favourites isn’t it Alberto, they are all so gorgeous. H. argutifolius is certainly special, I luckily seem to have found a spot that she likes in the woodland, where the sun comes between the trees all year round, and so is able to benefit from the summer sunshine( when it shines)!
What a gorgeous collection. I love the green halo on the flowers you think is not demure enough. You can send it to me. I thought the term anemone-flowered referred to flowers with the small ruffle around the inside–your Elizabethan dandy. that is my absolute favorite style of flower. I collect them.
Carolyn, I would send it if I could! The white anemone centred one has a small ruff of burgundy, nowhere near as large a ruff as the pink one that we both like so much. BTW, do you remember a large red one that I wrote about a few posts ago, Anna’s Red, I have since found that it has been named after Anna Pavord, one of our well known garden writers and it apparantly has a complicated ancestry which also includes H. niger.
I only have two colors of hellebore, white and purple. Seeing your display I am considering adding some more colors. There are so many varieties …it would be nice to enjoy as many as possible.
SB, the pinks and yellows are so lovely as well, whenever I see any at a nursery or garden centre, I’m spoilt for choice.There are so many different varieties brightening up the February garden, wouldn’t be without them, hope you find some lovely ones to add to your collection.