The first hellebore (Helleborus) blossoms appear in December, and thanks to the several varieties I’ve added to my garden over the years, a succession of blooms will last into March.
Although the Helleborus orientalis, or Lenten rose, is well known to many gardeners for its vibrant range of hues, it is the “old-fashioned species” rather than the modern hybrids that capture my interest. The majority of plants have significantly sturdier foliage that is appealing all year round. The gaudy Lenten rose is preferred in magazine stories. Naturally, this hellebore has the greatest availability in the retail nursery industry.
I looked for alternative species after learning that the many deer in my garden will not consume the Helleborus orientalis. I’ve added a few to my garden over the years and have discovered them to be sturdy, deer-free evergreen accents. Now I may enjoy important foliage and weeks of colorful flowers throughout the year.
The lengthy bloom of the bear’s foot hellebore (Helleborus foetidus) has just started. When the green flowers open and turn chartreuse, they will eventually become the center of attention in my entry garden. Each cup-shaped bloom’s margin has dark crimson patterns that are visible only under close inspection. The flower cluster grows at the very top of the sturdy central stalk.
Helleborus foetidus has delicate-looking dark green leaves that are neatly split. This two-foot-tall evergreen perennial gives the winter garden more vigor. This hellebore has withstood the highest summer solar exposure of any hellebore.
Bear’s foot hellebore will flourish if provided with some afternoon shade and sporadic irrigation. It’s one of the few consistent perennials I’ve found growing next to a deciduous tree with shallow roots. One plant will produce enough volunteers to increase the planting and spread to friends because it easily seeds.
The Corsican hellebore (Helleborus argutifolius, H. corsicus), which is comparable in height to H. foetidus and has similar cultural requirements, will bloom next. It is arguably the sunniest of all the hellebores, but in our Sierra foothill environment, it looks even prettier with a little shelter from the strong afternoon summer sun. The leaflets’ finely serrated edges do not encourage contact because the foliage is broader. Flowers are long-lasting through late winter and have a light green color.
At Emerisa Gardens in the vicinity of Santa Rosa, I came across Helleborus x sternii, a very pretty hellebore. I made the decision to attempt one in my garden after becoming mesmerized by the robust foliage’s unmistakably silvery-blue sheen. It took longer to grow than the other hellebores, but the wait was worthwhile. Even on overcast days, the leaves of this plant catch just a hint of sunlight, making it a striking year-round evergreen accent.
More than the other hellebores, Helleborus X sternii grows numerous stems, giving it the appearance of a tiny evergreen shrub. A excellent exposure is in some partial shade. The leaves did not burn when I tested it there where it gets some strong afternoon sun. Flower color is a pale green.
All hellebores share the ability to rapidly self-sow when conditions are favorable. Top treat the space around the plant with a half-inch of compost as each species starts to bloom. Since the flowers take weeks to develop from the initial bud to seed stage, there’s no rush with this garden task.
A “bed for the seed to drop into, the compost creates a favorable environment for germination. Before seedlings appear, a whole year is likely to pass. A crucial component of the process is stratification, which the winter’s freezing temperatures offer. If the parent plants are surrounded by a deciduous tree with enormous leaves, remove the leaves in the fall to prevent concealing the spring-emerging seedlings. Each hellebore will be shielded from heavy rains by a second light layer of compost.
Hellebores are extremely water-efficient plants, flourishing in arid environments with shallow tree roots. They bloom from December to March and are among the best evergreen and deer-resistant plants for shade and semi-shade gardening.
Can deer consume hellebore?
HelleborusHellebore Only hellebores are superior to hostas for usage in urban gardens! They retain their leaves throughout the winter and signal the end of the season with blooms in the early spring or even in the late winter. They are extremely resistant to deer since they are toxic.
Who or what consumes hellebores?
Slugs have a significant propensity toward hellebores. These ghastly insects not only eat the foliage, but they can even climb up the stalks and eat the blossoms.
Slugs and snails can be removed in a variety of ways, such as by hand-picking the slithery gastropods and feeding them to your chickens or by wasting expensive beer supplies in traps.
Slug Gone, a distinctive woolen product from the UK that is offered by Arbico Organics, can also deter them.
What devoured my hellebores?
Beautiful floral plants called hellebores blossom in the early spring or even in the dead of winter. Since the majority of plant species are evergreens, it can occasionally be unattractive to have last year’s growth still there when the new spring foliage emerges.
Which plants should deer stay away from?
- White-tailed deer damage to nurseries has been researched by researchers from the University of Rhode Island. They found that deer had a fondness for hostas, daylilies, and English ivy in particular.
A few study participants made the interesting observation that deer appear to choose fertilized plants over those that haven’t.
Which Plants Deer Don’t Want to Eat
It should come as no surprise that deer tend to avoid harmful plants. Deer steer clear of common flowers with toxicity like daffodils, foxgloves, and poppies.
- Deer also have a propensity to avoid plants with powerful odors. Flowers like peonies and bearded irises, as well as herbs like sages, decorative salvias, and lavender, are simply “stinky to deer.
- Would you like to consume anything sharp? Deer don’t either (unless they’re in a pinch). They avoid eating plants like lamb’s ear on their favored menu.
Deer-Resistant Plants for Shade
- Bleeding hearts are one of our favorite perennials that can withstand deer (Lamprocapnos spectabilis, aka Dicentra spectabilis).
- Astilbe are plants that thrive in shade and are resistant to deer. Bridal Veil, Visions, and Fanal asters combine well.
Deer-Resistant Plants for Sun
- The Coreopsis verticillata ‘Zagreb’ variety has a long blooming season from May through September and attracts butterflies but not deer.
- The perennial Liatris spicata ‘Kobold’ or Blazing Star is another sun-loving plant that isn’t a favorite among the deer.
- One of our favorite native plants, Echinacea purpurea, attracts pollinators.
- Salvia x sylvestris, sometimes known as wood sage, is another sun-lover.
- Last but not least, a popular type of Shasta Daisy that deer do not prefer is Leucanthemum x superbum “Becky.”
List of Top Deer-Resistant Plants, Flowers, and Shrubs
Deer-resistant plants have been identified through research as those that are less likely to be consumed by deer. The list is below. Here is a list of common plants that deer rarely or never seriously harm. Remember that there are no plants that are entirely resistant to deer; this is the first rule of deer proofing.
Do hellebores spread?
Hellebore seeds will self-sow, yes. However, if you grow various species adjacent to one another, permitting them to do so can produce unexpected hybrids. Any new seedlings that are too close to mature plants should be thinned off. After three years, self-sown plants should begin to bloom.
Do hellebores need to be divided?
Even while it’s not typically necessary for the plant’s health, the best time to divide them is in the fall. In general, it’s better to just leave hellebores alone because they can be picky about being moved and dug up.
Do bunnies consume hellebore?
In the early spring, rabbits will eat early blooming treats like crocuses, so what can a flower-less gardener do? Fortunately, the hellebore, sometimes known as the Christmas rose, is a very resilient and early-blooming substitute that rabbits stay away from. Many traditional hellebores have demure, downward-facing blooms that are murky colors of mild cream, green, or reddish brown in the spring, but more recent hybrid varieties, like ‘Amber Gem,’ have larger blooms with ruffled petals that are vivid pink or gold in color.
Do deer consume hostas?
Hosta is a genus of plants with distinctive leaf that is extensively cultivated as a shade-loving plant. Hostas come in around 45 different species, with heights ranging from 1 inch to more than 6 feet. Unfortunately, hosta is one of the plants that deer enjoy eating the most.
On the scale from Rarely Damaged to Frequently Severely Damaged, Rutgers University rates this plant as Frequently Severely Damaged.
Deer consume hostas, however they just consume the foliage, leaving the stems untouched. The stalks are left in its wake. Slugs are another species that often consumes hosta. However, the harm will be very different. Learn more about how hostas consume slugs. Searching for deer prints or droppings close to the plants can help you determine whether deer are the culprits behind the damage.
What location is ideal for planting hellebores?
In USDA Hardiness Zones 4-9, hybrids of the wild Lenten rose are easily accessible to amateur gardeners. They go by the moniker Helleborus x hybridus, which we will discuss in a moment.
The clusters of lenten roses can grow up to two feet tall and wide and are acaulescent, which means that each stem rises directly from the rhizomatous root structure.
Those cup-shaped flowers that face downward have sepals that resemble petals and enclose an inner flower with delicate details termed a “nectary.
The colors of sepals range from pink and red to green and yellow tones. Variations including veining, contrasting spotting, and “A wide range of color options are multiplied by the picotee edging, semi-double sepals, and double sepals.
Glossy, dark-green, multi-lobed leaves with a serrated edge and a leathery texture make up the foliage.
Hellebores need a moist, loamy, well-drained soil. In the winter, they do well in exposed areas, but in the summertime heat, they are weak.
Plants that need protection from the summer sun should be placed in the partial to full shadow of a deciduous tree (a tree that loses its leaves).
Due to the extreme summer heat, I once lost a hellebore. I had put it close to a spruce tree in the hopes that it would offer suitable shade. It wasn’t to be.
A Note of Caution:
It’s crucial to remember that hellebores are poisonous to humans and animals, just like many ornamentals. Gardening gloves are a requirement when handling these plants because skin contact may irritate you as well.
The Helleborus genus now has 20 identified species, the most of which are indigenous to the limestone-rich areas of the Mediterranean, particularly the Balkan Alps. China is the natural habitat of one species, H. thibetanus.
This plant, which originated in the wild, eventually found its way into the gardens of European herbalists, became a treasured ornamental specimen among master gardeners, and is now a popular in domestic gardens.
The Greek words helein, which means murder, and bora, which means nourishment, are supposed to be the source of the name. This is a superb illustration of its contradictory nature as a useful medication when used in moderation and a lethal poison when used in excess.
The history of hellebore is the stuff of stories, full with mystery and superstition.
It is mentioned in Greek mythology as a treatment for insanity, and it is thought to have been used to poison a water source during the First Sacred War (595 to 585 BC), rendering the citizens of Kirrha incapable of defending their city due to severe gastrointestinal pain.
By the 1500s, both human and animal bodies and brains were frequently cleansed by its potent purgative properties.
People once thought that a coating of powdered hellebore could make them invisible, but possibly these were the same individuals who were receiving mental health treatment.
European species were beginning to hybridize as attractive examples by the middle of the 1850s.
There is little proof that these plants were brought to America, although it is assumed that they were probably brought there for medical reasons.
However, by the 1700s, the plant had been mentioned by renowned Philadelphia, Pennsylvania botanist John Bartram, and by the early 1800s, dried, powdered root could be bought for use as an insecticide and a deworming medication.
Hellebores didn’t enter American gardens until the 19th century, according to Cornell University botanist Liberty Hyde Baily, whose Cyclopedia of American Horticulture listed eight species suitable for home growing.
Other notable gardens in the Philadelphia vicinity, such as the Scott Arboretum at Swarthmore College and Winterthur, the DuPont estate, had outstanding ornamental collections by the turn of the 20th century, and the race to develop and amass even more hybrid types was on.
Modern hellebores are in high demand due to their ease of cultivation, early bloom time, and lifespan.
Should hellebore blossoms be removed?
Before the flower pods split, I always remove all of the flower stems. Last but not least, it’s common advice to divide your hardy perennials every three years and replant the healthiest pieces in better soil. But it’s ideal to let hellebores and hostas grow into substantial clumps without splitting.
Do hellebores like shade or the sun?
- Hellebores thrive in slightly shaded, evenly moist, well-drained soil.
- Long dry spells should be adequately hydrated; once established, they are drought-tolerant.
- Hellebores thrive in soil that has been greatly improved by organic matter.
- The Helleborus x hybridus (formerly known as Helleborus orientalis) hybrids prefer a soil pH that is close to neutral or even alkaline; if your soil is excessively acidic, add lime.
- The Christmas Rose (H. niger) may take some time to establish itself; to speed things along, consider adding some magnesium to the environment in the form of Epsom salts or dolomitic limestone.
- Early in the spring, apply a little amount of balanced, granular fertilizer to the plants.
What happens to hellebores after they flower?
Depending on the variety, plant hellebores in full or partial shade at the front of a border. They can be grown in pots in a compost with a loam basis, but they thrive in rich, well-drained soil.
When to plant hellebores
As long as the soil is not frozen, hellebores can be planted at any time of the year. The majority of hellebores are listed for sale from late winter to early spring when they are in bloom, but you might locate one in a garden center’s clearance section in the summer that you can plant with no issues. Keep in mind that hellebores detest being moved after being planted, so avoid doing so.
How to plant hellebores
Hellebores should be planted in the same way as other perennials, with a spadeful of garden compost and a sprinkle of mycorrhizal fungi to aid in the plant’s establishment. Water thoroughly and gently press in.
Watch Monty Don’s instructional video on planting and growing hellebores to learn about planting depth, soil preparation, and how to prevent leaf spot disease. Additionally, Monty discusses how to select the best flowers for immediate effect and displays the variety of his collection of hellebores:
How to care for hellebores
When blossoms and new foliage appear, trim back the thick, leathery leaves, and mulch the plants every year with well-rotted compost or manure. Once established, hellebores struggle to be moved, therefore try to avoid doing so.
How to propagate hellebores
Avoid dividing hellebores since they struggle to be transported. In order to develop new plants for nothing, gather ripe seed and sow it into modules. Alternately, allow the hellebores in your garden to self-seed. By letting them self-seed at random, you’ll produce a hodge-podge of various colors and flower shapes; you might even develop your own new hybrid! No hellebore seedling will be true to its parents.
Growing hellebores: problem-solving
Leaf spot, a fungus infection that causes unattractive brown and black patches on the leaves, is the major foe of hellebores. When you see damaged foliage, remove it.
Here, Monty Don shows how to recognize hellebore leaf spot and describes how to prevent it from spreading to other plants:
Advice on buying hellebores
- Garden centers sell hellebores, but you can get a broader selection at specialized nurseries and online
- Avoid double-flowered hellebores if you are growing for bees because single-flowered plants are the best for pollinators.