Hellebores

[Hoy]

Although the hellebore season started weeks, if not months, ago they are still doing well in the garden.
Here are some Helleborus orientalis seedlings:

[Hoy]

And here is Helleborus argutifolius. The leaves stay green all winter and in the spring you get lime green flowers.

[Todd Boland]

I like that light pink one!

They are peaking locally.  Here is a selection from our BG.  The dark and pale yellow are Helleborus orientalis types, the first white is Helleborus niger, the second one is Helleborus nigercors and the last is Helleborus odorus.

[Todd Boland]

I only have a purple Helleborus orientalis and a Helleborus foetidus (the later is just about open).  I photographed mine this evening.

[Hoy]

The orientalis types self sow all over here. The niger selection is very different from mine, seems to be a good plant.

[Lori S.]

Here, finally, is Helleborus cyclophyllus - my plants, in this dry, cool yard, never achieve the lushness of those grown in warmer climates.

[Hoy]

Cyclophyllus is a species that I haven't tried yet. I like this genus, they usually make fine plants here. If I get the chance I will try this too.

[Toole]

A few near bloom here today .

A double i raised from NZ seed a few years ago --finally released from it's pot last year and much happier.
 

The other two pics are of seed sent from a friend in Aussie back in Dec 07--both first flowering .

The double red looks like it has come true.
Although i also sowed picote yellow i'm sure of the other one.

Cheers Dave.

[James R.]

A few of my Hellebore plants!

[McDonough]

Reed, are these flowering for you now or photos of plants from earlier in the year?  I particularly like the double green one. 

One thing I miss about my brief 4 years living in the Seattle Washington area, are how marvelously certain plants like Helleborus, Bergenia, and Rhododendron grew, and by comparison, how tatty-&-ratty some Hellebores can look in spring after beaten up by a hard winter.

[James R.]

McDonough,

No! these are from last winter I will take more this year in Dec. and Jan.. I have some amazing green ones and hopefully even some better ones this year. Like they say the grass is always greener on the other side I would love to be able to grow some of the plants you grow in situ. I can't stand most Rhododendron (I guess because I see them all the time) I enjoy the flowers in other peoples yards  . Seattle is nice to visit but it rains more there even more than here and after living in Vegas for 6 years this is hard to get used to again.

[McDonough]

McDonough,

No! these are from last winter I will take more this year in Dec. and Jan.. I have some amazing green ones and hopefully even some better ones this year. Like they say the grass is always greener on the other side I would love to be able to grow some of the plants you grow in situ. I can't stand most Rhododendron (I guess because I see them all the time) I enjoy the flowers in other peoples yards  . Seattle is nice to visit but it rains more there even more than here and after living in Vegas for 6 years this is hard to get used to again.

Feel free to call me Mark (it's in my signature block )  One thing about the NARGS Forum is that the forum login names default to one's last name, so it is recommended to put your full name in your personal signature block, otherwise you might be addressed by last name only, if first name is unknown.

I believe all gardeners should have the experience of gardening in more than one place, it lends dimension to understanding climatic differences and the effect on plants.  Gardening in rainy Seattle was an experience to be sure, and while it had its highlights, and was a thorough learning experience, as a born New Englander it was a hard adjustment, and the one thing I missed the most was New England autumns, nothing like it, so I returned to my roots.  It must be quite an adjustment for you going from an arid environment like Vegas to the banana belt of the Pacific Northwest!  One great asset of the area, is that the rain and dampness can be escaped with a short 2 hour drive or so, to be within magnificent dryland and sagebrush areas, with a fabulously diverse flora.

Back to Hellebores, my garden is too wind-exposed in winter and sun-baked and dry in summer for most hellebores to prosper, they persist as mere pathetic shadows of themselves compared to more favorable climates, so I don't bother.  Although, I do like H. niger very much, and this one seems more amenable to our climate and makes a grand show each spring.

[James R.]

Thank you for the tip Mark. My name is James I will figure out all these buttons on here in time I guess. 

[McDonough]

Thank you for the tip Mark. My name is James I will figure out all these buttons on here in time I guess. 

Well, a belated Welcome To The NARGS Forum James!  If you have any questions about NARGS Forum and posting, feel free to ask.  By the way, I just noticed that your signature block states you are at 500' elevation.  I too am at 500' elevation, and I do think that gardening atop a hill has its own set of climatic concerns and issues.  On the good side here, we're in apple orchard country in this part of Massachusetts, the trees planted on hills to avoid the early frosts, so we do indeed miss the earliest frosts.

[RickR]

Feel free to call me Mark (it's in my signature block )  One thing about the NARGS Forum is that the forum login names default to one's last name, so it is recommended to put your full name in your personal signature block, otherwise you might be addressed by last name only, if first name is unknown.

Actually, you can change how your user name is listed on the forum, also.  That's what I did: I am "RickR" rather than "Rodich."

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And a very nice collection that you show here, James!