Top 5 Reasons Why We LOVE Helleborus

Posted on February 7, 2017 in Garden, Garden Tips, Staff Picks

Written by West Coast Gardens

These blooming beauties love the shade, are easy to care for and come in a wide range of eye-catching colours. What’s not to love about Helleborus? Here’s our top 5 reasons for our admiration:

1. Set it and (almost) forget it
   

   For gardening beginners or those low on time, Helleborus is a fantastic addition to your garden.
   This tough little flower requires minimal care and best of all— slugs and deers have absolutely zero interest in them.
   
   Tip: If aphids appear, they can be easily washed off with a stream of water from a hose (they can’t climb back up) or sprayed with an insecticidal soap. Organic garden practice encourages a healthy balance of insects in the garden!
   
   

2. There’s one in every colour
   

   Helleborus grows in a range of colours including: white, yellow, pink, black, with spots or without. With easy care instructions and a hardy growing spirit, flower breeders from Germany to Portland have taken a special interest in Helleborus.
   If you’re looking for more exotic colours check out the hues available in the Gold Collection bred by the Heuger family in Germany, or the Winter Jewel Collection bred by Marietta O’Byrne in Oregon.
   
   

3. Shade dwellers
   

   Helleborus thrives in the shade! Entryways, covered balconies, and shady empty spaces in your garden under trees or statutory accents are excellent spots for these easy care plants.
   Because they mostly prefer shade, light colour blooms show up best in the darkness.  Darker shades of pink, red and black can be planted against other plants such as evergreen grasses and evergreen shrubs or a light coloured fence to let their blooms pop.
   
   

4. Winter time gems
   

   These varied beauties bloom even when nothing much is happening in the garden, from November right through to Easter! In fact, we included them in our recent top winter gardening tips post for this very reason.
   Because Helleborus calls the European region home they are no stranger to a range of temperatures and have developed the ability to withstand freezing temperatures while keeping their blooms intact. Although gardens across Vancouver and the Lower Mainland rarely get this cold, you can count on the Helleborus blooms to provide a hit of colour in your garden and provide something beautiful to look at even in the depths of winter due to their evergreen leaves.

    

5. Plays well with others
   

   The Helleborus pairs easily with other flowers, grasses and ferns to fill in your garden. Consider adding Snowdrops alongside your Helleborus flowers as they bloom at the same time and withstand the same conditions.  Other flowering bulbs to consider include the snow crocuses and mini irises.
   For those looking to continue a theme of blooms with hue, Heuchera comes in a rainbow of colours and are also evergreen. Lastly we suggest taking a peek at elegant additions like evergreen carex grasses or evergreen ferns such as dryopteris erythrosora (autumn fern) to enhance a woodland effect.

   
   We’d love to hear what you think. Let us know how Helleborus is finding a home in your garden on Facebook.