Plant of the Month: Hellebores

Tough, versatile and offering elegant colour in the winter garden; Hellebores are beloved by all gardeners. They are also wonderful providers for any and all pollinators that are out at the moment. Whenever a fresh pallet of hellebores arrive at our garden centre, you will be sure to hear buzzing around them.

Hellebores are reliable and flower every year once established with little or no attention. Hellebores flower from December through to mid-spring, although the flowers may stay on the plants longer as they slowly fade, but still look attractive. Many Hellebores are self seeders, (although not all the modern hybrids which do not always produce seed.) If you want to restrict the spread of Hellebores, remove the spent flower heads. When they self seed, the new seedlings will form a clump near the parent plant which will flower after two or three years, a process which over time creates clumps of Hellebores which look good in a natural or woodland setting.

Hellebore are easy plants and can grow in a variety of soils and conditions, though their preferred growing conditions are neutral to alkaline soil with dappled shade. This means Hellebores are plants you can place in most parts of the garden. Hellebores require little or no maintenance, but they do better if the old foliage is removed in late winter. Removal of most of the foliage displays the flowers at their best, leaving just the new young foliage coming through. Cut back carefully, because at ground level the flowers buds are forming along with new foliage.

With over 30 different varieties of hellebore available at our garden centre, you will be sure to find the perfect one(s) to brighten up your winter garden.