The hellebore or winter plant, which blooms at the very beginning of spring, is very decorative and unpretentious, and even novice gardeners can plant and care for it. Various legends and beliefs are associated with hellebore. It is believed that it appeared near the place where Christ was born, which is why one of the types of winter road is called the “Christmas rose”. According to some legends, you can use it to summon spirits.
Hellebore or Helleborus – evergreen perennial from the buttercup family, 20-50 cm high, with a rigid stem and a short thickened and powerful rhizome, which branches strongly. The flowers are quite large, in some varieties up to 18 cm in diameter.
Inflorescences can be simple or double with a variety of colors: purple, white, pink, light green and ink. There are varieties with speckled flowers and two-color varieties. Leaves located close to the ground are also decorative. Hellebore blooms in spring, usually in April.
Growing the hellebore flower is not difficult, but it requires a little patience, because the plant develops quite slowly. It does not like transplants and grows quietly in one place for about 10 years. This must be taken into account when choosing a site for it. In the open sun, the winter garden may bloom earlier, but the flowering period will decrease, and its leaves will not be as decorative.
If hellebore is planted in full shade, it will bloom later. Its leaves may become larger and more dark color. The best option- This is partial shade under the canopy of trees. In addition, fallen leaves will be additional fertilizer for the bushes. The apple tree is perfect for this: it is its leaves that contain everything necessary for the plant substances. It is worth taking care to protect the bushes from strong winds.
Since the winter road does not adapt very well to a new place and develops slowly, it is better to purchase planting material a lot.
The soil for planting hellebores is moderately nutritious, light, loose, with neutral acidity and a high humus content. If the soil pH is high, dig it up and add lime, dolomite flour. Hellebore does not tolerate stagnant moisture, so drainage is required.
People have long believed that hellebore, planted near a house, can protect against magic and attacks from evil spirits. Over time, people started talking about him as a miracle doctor who helps to overcome various ailments, cleanse the body and even lose weight. excess weight. And hellebore, which even a beginner can plant and care for, blooms early and so beautifully that it was dubbed the Christmas rose.
In nature, thickets of evergreen hellebore (helleborus) from the buttercup family are found in Western Asia, Central Europe and throughout the Mediterranean. The perennial is resistant to cold and drought and begins to bloom when the flower beds are still empty. Large inflorescences reach a diameter of 8-12 cm, and the color of the petals depends on the type and variety of the plant.
Perhaps the most spectacular representative is the black hellebore. In nature it blooms in December, but in our latitudes it blooms closer to March. This species got its name because of its thin roots, which are actually black in color. Flowers on a fleshy stem are usually solitary. The petals are completely snow-white or with a greenish and pale pinkish tint, the stamens are yellow. The basal leaves are dense, dark green in color, with a glossy surface. The plant reaches a height of up to 50 cm.
There are several varieties of black hellebore. Potter's Wheel has snow-white flowers up to 12 cm in diameter. Prgaesoh blooms soft pink, and will decorate an empty flower garden at the end of autumn. The white petals of the White Magic variety gradually turn red.
Eastern hellebore is no less attractive; it is one of the first to bloom, when the soil has not yet thawed from the winter cold. The species is unpretentious and frost-resistant, and will delight you with a wide palette of shades. The inflorescences can be cream, white, purple, yellow-lemon, pinkish, the color of Burgundy wine. Sometimes the star-shaped petals are decorated with specks, and the flat, dark green leaves look like an open palm.
Caucasian hellebore is not so beautiful during the flowering period, but the foliage remains decorative until autumn, and sometimes, in winters with little snow, even longer. The plant is poisonous, so you should handle it with extreme caution. However, this species is often used for medicinal purposes. Stinking hellebore does not smell very pleasant, however, it is loved by gardeners for its exotic appearance. It has multiple pale green flowers and deeply lobed leathery leaves.
Among the selective varieties there are stunning specimens, for example, with blue-black petals or double petals.
Hellebore does not like transplants, so it is advisable to immediately choose for it appropriate place, where he can live without problems for about 10 years. There are no special requirements for the soil, but it is better if it is loose and well-drained. Helleborus prefer partial shade; they can be safely planted under spreading trees or among shrubs and. Then in the summer they will be protected from the hot sun, and during the flowering period they will receive enough sun rays. In addition, falling leaves and needles will serve as mulch.
Hellebore can be propagated by seed or by dividing bushes.
Growing hellebore from seeds. It is not recommended to store seeds for a long time, as they will quickly lose their viability. Therefore, immediately after harvesting, plant them as seedlings in loose and moist soil, deepening them to about 1.5 cm. Shoots will appear in March. It’s time for grown plants with a couple of leaves to dive into a slightly shaded place, but the bushes will bloom only after 3 years. During this time, they should be transplanted to a permanent site, preferably in September. True, sometimes seeds are planted directly in June open ground.
Division. Propagating hellebores this way is as easy as shelling pears. In the spring, when the bush has already faded, the root is divided into parts and each of them is planted in previously prepared holes.
The rules for planting hellebore are the same for both divisions and bushes grown from seeds. The holes are made at a distance of about 30 cm, and a little is placed on the bottom. Carefully holding the plant, you need to fill the space with soil, carefully compact it and moisten the area. Over the next 20 days, it is important to remember to water regularly.
Helleborus black and oriental reproduce well by division. Stinking hellebore does not respond well to root division, but it spreads easily in the area by self-sowing.
Planting and caring for hellebores is not a difficult task. The plant needs regular watering. To retain moisture in the soil as the weather warms up, after the bushes have flowered, the area around them is mulched with compost. In gratitude for feeding, the helleborus will bloom more luxuriantly. Bone meal can be used as fertilizer every 3 months.
Slugs, snails, caterpillars, rodents and aphids can become a threat to the plant, then insecticides will help out. If the leaves are visible dark spots, which gradually increase - they are probably affected by a fungal infection, which most often happens in wet weather. It is better to remove diseased leaves and treat the bush with a fungicide.
Perennials that are cared for correctly (watered on time, do not forget to fertilize, etc.) practically do not get sick; as a rule, the weakest specimens are affected.
Hellebore flower is a perennial herbaceous plant. It comes from the Mediterranean region. There, hellebore was initially used only as a medicinal raw material. IN folk medicine All over the world it is used to treat skin diseases, epilepsy and even paralysis. This plant can be seen in many gardens today. It is very beautiful during the flowering period, but even after it retains its decorative effect due to the rich and unusual color of the leaves.
The flower is valued by gardeners for its ease of care and good resistance to frost. Perhaps this is where the name of the plant comes from. It is also called rose of Christ and helleborus (killing food). It is worth noting that hellebore is poisonous. Therefore, for treatment it is used only as an external agent.
This plant is evergreen, so it can decorate any corner. The plant is surprising in that it has no stems. Tough stems grow from long petioles large leaves. The flowers are also quite large, reaching fifteen centimeters in diameter. They appear directly on the snow as soon as the plant gains strength to overcome the ice layer. Flowers can be of various colors - from pure white to dark purple. There are plenty to choose from for your site. This is the description of the hellebore flower. The photo below shows what the plant looks like.
The flower is very decorative, so breeders have bred several dozen species and hybrids. It is worth considering only the most interesting of them.
IN natural conditions this species grows in the southern and Central Europe. Flowering occurs from December to February. IN Russian conditions this process begins around April, when the snow melts. The flowers are snow-white, reaching eight centimeters. There are also larger specimens with soft pink buds that bloom in November.
Caucasian hellebore. Found only in the Caucasus mountains. This species has unusual foliage and beautiful flowers. It retains its decorative effect not only in summer, but also in winter. Provided there was little snow.
Stinky hellebore. The name itself says that this species smells unpleasant. But it boasts very beautiful, almost exotic leathery leaves. This hellebore also produces many flowers of an unusual pale green hue. The bush is compact, reaching a height of no more than half a meter. Pay attention to the photo: the stinking hellebore flower is presented in all its glory.
Eastern hellebore. Its flowering begins in mid-March-April. It looks very spectacular plant. The buds can be from soft pink to bright purple. There are varieties with burls on the flowers.
Hellebore is completely undemanding when it comes to soil composition. But it is still recommended to plant this plant in nutritious, fairly loose, neutral or slightly alkaline soil. If the land on the site is different increased acidity, then it is necessary to carry out liming. Hellebore is a flower that grows well on leaf humus. Therefore, it is better to plant it near shrubs or large trees.
Stagnation of water in the ground is detrimental to this plant. Therefore, hellebore cannot be planted in flooded areas or near the occurrence of groundwater. When planting in the soil, be sure to make a drainage layer of expanded clay, pebbles or pieces of red brick.
It is also worth noting that the plant loves partial shade. But it will grow well in a sunny place. In general, even a beginner can master the care and planting of hellebore flowers.
If you plan to plant hellebores in open ground, then it is best to do this in April or closer to autumn, in September.
Select a site and location based on the recommendations above. Dig the soil deeply and level it. Do planting pits. Their depth and diameter should be about 30 centimeters. The same distance should be between the dug holes.
Place compost at the bottom of the holes so that the seedling takes root faster and begins to grow actively. After this, lower the hellebore into the hole, holding it with one hand and filling it with soil with the other. Compact the soil around it and water it thoroughly. Please note that the plant will often need a lot of water over the course of three weeks. As you can see, it is not at all difficult to plant and care. The photo of hellebore flowers above shows what seedlings can look like.
The plant reproduces well by seeds and division. It is worth taking a closer look at both methods.
Hellebore seeds do not retain their germination capacity well. Therefore, they should be used immediately after collection and not stored. Sowed in a nutritious, very loose soil to a depth of about one to two centimeters. The sprouts will be visible in about a month. But the hellebore will bloom only after three years.
When several true leaves appear on the seedlings, they need to be picked out. Great place there will be partial shade (for example, under a spreading tree). Hellebore can be transplanted to a permanent flowerbed after two to three years. It is best to do this in September.
Hellebore is a plant that is easiest to propagate by dividing the bush. When it fades in the spring, it needs to be dug up. After using a sharp tool, the rhizome is divided so that there are shoots on each part. They can already be transplanted to permanent place. In the first month, care should be thorough with frequent watering and mulching the soil around the roots.
It is worth noting that for certain types of hellebore, one propagation method is suitable. So, the Christmas rose is propagated in the spring by dividing the bush. The same method is suitable for oriental hellebore. But its propagation is recommended in the fall. But stinking hellebore does not tolerate division at all. It reproduces well by self-sowing. To do this, it is enough to leave withered buds on the bushes after flowering.
Mature plant doesn't like transfers. It can develop perfectly in one place for up to ten years. During this time, all care comes down to watering, weeding, and occasional fertilizing. If necessary, carry out pest control.
The hellebore flower only needs watering during severe drought. To minimize this procedure, it is advisable to mulch. It will not only retain moisture in the soil, but also stop growth weed. Leaf humus and compost are usually used as mulch in equal proportions.
It is recommended to fertilize hellebore in spring and early summer. There is no need to do this more often. Ash and bone meal in a one to one ratio will be a good feeding. If you apply mulch, it will rot over time and will also become an excellent fertilizer.
When hellebore blooms, it can provide flowers for several months. After the buds fall, the seed pods begin to ripen. Usually the process lasts the whole summer. After this, the boxes simply burst. To avoid having to collect scattered seeds on the ground, gardeners use a little trick. They simply put gauze bags over the unripe fruits. The crumbled seeds will be in them. They are then dried in a room with low humidity and good ventilation. You can store the seeds for a short time in a paper bag.
As already mentioned, the plant is a cold-resistant perennial. But in snowless, frosty winters it can suffer. Therefore, to be on the safe side, a flowerbed with hellebore can be covered with spruce branches or dry leaves.
In general, hellebore is disease-resistant and is almost never affected by pests.
No plant can replace hellebore flowers, either in summer or winter. They look great in all compositions. Hellebores can be used to make wonderful borders with primroses - delicate crocuses, early tulips, daffodils or snowdrops. Hosta and bergenia bushes will be excellent partners for the flower. They also welcome partial shade. A very decorative composition with astilbe and geranium. Hellebore also looks amazing on an emerald green lawn, surrounded by cereals and ferns.
A flowering plant can decorate your terrace for Christmas. To do this, you need to dig up the bush before frost and transplant it into a spacious pot. Then enter it into closed veranda or a greenhouse. They need to maintain a temperature of + 5 degrees. Under such conditions, beautiful buds will appear and bloom by the holidays.
The article examined a photo and description of the hellebore flower. When this plant blooms, how to plant it and how to care for it - now you know all this. Put these recommendations into practice, and then you will be able to all year round show off your picturesque garden. Even a beginner can handle care and cultivation!
For real fans flower beds I want it to be colorful flowering plants made them happy even in winter. A real gift for such gardeners is the plant hellebore, which can please with its flowers even in November and at the very beginning of April. Read more about hellebore, its types and varieties.
It's about about the most common and popular in landscape design form of hellebore. IN natural nature it is often found in areas from southern Germany to the Balkan Peninsula, growing mainly in mountainous wooded areas. Black hellebore is a perennial herbaceous plant, which can stretch up to 30 cm upward. It is distinguished by large upward-pointing flowers, the diameter of which can reach 8 cm. They are formed on very high peduncles (up to 60 cm) and are distinguished by a two-color color - snow-white inside the flower and light pink outside.
Black hellebore begins to bloom at the very beginning of April, when other plants are just beginning to come to life. It lasts about two weeks. The leaves of the plant are dark green, very dense, and do not fall off in winter. By the way, the winter hardiness of this type of hellebore is very high - it can easily tolerate temperatures dropping to -35 °C. This species has two subspecies - nigerkors and nigistern.
Also in decorative floriculture, the following varieties of black hellebore are quite common:
Important! All types of hellebore are poisonous, although their rhizomes are used in folk medicine. For this reason, it is worth resorting to treatment with hellebore only after consultation with doctors and taking into account all the standards for preparing medicinal tinctures. For people suffering from heart and liver diseases, treatment with hellebore is contraindicated.
From the name of this hellebore it becomes clear that it is most common in the Caucasus, although it is no less common in the mountainous areas of Greece and Turkey. Caucasian hellebore has a long flowering period - from late April to mid-June. Flowers are also formed on tall peduncles from 20 to 50 cm, however, unlike the black hellebore, they are drooping in the Caucasian one.
The diameter of each flower can reach 8 cm, the color is white with a greenish or yellowish-brown tint. The leaves of the plant are evergreen, fleshy and long - about 15 cm. They also lengthen due to their oblong petiole. Leaves and stems tolerate even the lowest temperature drops. The Caucasian hellebore is one of the most poisonous species, and probably for this reason it is least often planted on personal plots and flower beds.
Abkhazian hellebore is a rather colorful type of this plant, since even its bare fleshy leaves can have not only a dark green color, but also a violet-green color. In addition, during flowering, large drooping flowers of a dark red color are formed on 40-centimeter purple-red peduncles (sometimes there are darker specks on the flowers). The diameter of each flower is approximately 8 cm, and the flowering period lasts from the beginning of April until almost the end of May. Has good resistance to frost.
Did you know? In Germany, potted hellebore is more popular and is usually given as a Christmas gift. There is also a legend associated with this plant, according to which it was the hellebore that presented one of the assistant shepherds to the baby Jesus in honor of his birth. In this regard, the flower has another name - “rose of Christ”.
The homeland of the oriental hellebore is not only the Caucasus, but also Greece, and even Turkey. This species is also a perennial. It grows only up to 30 cm in height, with medium-sized flowers - up to 5 cm in diameter. The color of the flowers is very pleasant - lilac. The leaves of the eastern hellebore are also medium in size, have a dense fleshy structure and are dark green in color. However, it is with the leaves that it is associated main drawback of this species - they are very often affected by a fungus, as a result of which the plant loses its attractiveness.
In floriculture, several varieties of oriental hellebore are known, among which the most popular are:
This type of hellebore is common in wildlife only in the western part of Europe, where it is found on rocky, well-lit slopes. Stinking hellebore is distinguished by its abundantly leafy stems, which are distinguished by the presence of narrow shiny segments colored dark green. The leaves on the plant overwinter. During flowering, a tall peduncle up to 80 cm is formed on a low hellebore up to 30 cm high. The peduncle is almost completely covered with inflorescences consisting of large quantity flowers. Unlike all other species, the stinking hellebore has very small flowers and are bell-shaped. Their color is no less interesting - green with red-brown edges. In addition to good resistance to low temperatures, this type It also withstands severe droughts.
In floriculture, only one is used decorative variety stinking hellebore - " Wester Flisk" It differs from the main representative of the species in narrower segments on the leaves and the reddish tint of the branches with inflorescences. The aroma of the flowers is not very pleasant.
Important! Best suited for planting hellebore seedling method, since when sowing from seeds, the first flowering can be seen only in the third year of the growing season. But the stinking hellebore species can also reproduce by self-sowing.
This type of hellebore is native to the Mediterranean islands of Corsica and Sardinia. Corsican hellebore is one of the tallest of its kind - its stems can stretch up to 75 cm in height. During growth, only a few straight stems are formed from one root, which immediately begin to grow widely to the sides. During flowering, small flower stalks are formed on the bush, densely covered with very dense tassels with flowers.
The shape of the flowers is cup-shaped, and the color is yellowish-green. On the island of Corsica, the flowering of this type of hellebore begins in February, while in our latitudes this growing season occurs in early April. Corsican hellebore does not have good frost resistance, so it is recommended to cover it with sawdust and spruce branches for the winter. One of the most famous varieties this species is the variety " Grünspecht" It is also a fairly large plant, which produces red-green inflorescences in April.
Reddish hellebore can be found even in Ukraine, as it is one of the representatives of the flora of the Carpathian Mountains. This plant is also common in Hungary and Romania.
Distinctive features of this type of hellebore are:
Important! To collect hellebore seeds yourself, you need to tie gauze bags onto the boxes formed after flowering. Then, when the boxes crack, the seeds will not fall to the ground, but will remain in the bag, after which they can be dried and sown. It is better to sow hellebore in the winter so that the seeds do not lose their viability during storage.
This separate species included several varieties of garden hellebore hybrids, each of which combines several of the above-described species. Thanks to this, when sowing hybrid hellebore, you can get a variety of flower colors in one area, the diameter of which ranges from 5 to 8 cm.
