Helleborus orientalis subsp. abchasicus

Helleborus abchasicus is a botanical species with a very natural-looking deep pink flower. It is still relatively unknown. Like all Oriental hellebores, it delights with its long and abundant flowering from the end of winter. This robust and very hardy perennial can be grown in borders, amongst shrubs, mixed borders, as well as in pots. Easy to grow, even in heavy soil, it thrives in shade or non-burning sun.

Native to Greece, Turkey, and the central and eastern Caucasus, Helleborus orientalis, sometimes called the Lenten Rose, is a perennial plant of the Ranunculaceae family that hybridises very easily with other species, resulting in hybrids with a wide range of colours and forms from random sowing, so that no variety names are given to these hybrids. They are distinguished by their shape and colour characteristics. The Oriental Hellebore is a hardy plant that can withstand temperatures as low as -15°C (5°F), naturally growing in forests, thickets, and clearings up to 2,000m altitude.

This Hellebore forms a compact and leafy clump of about 40 cm in all directions. It is composed of palmate basal leaves, slightly toothed, dark green and shiny. These are evergreen leaves, 30 to 40 cm long, composed of 7 to 9 leaflets. They actually only live for 8 months and are regularly replaced by new leaves.

Between February and April, a display of single flowers with a diameter of 4 to 5 cm is formed. These flowers, with dark pink sepals in the shape of a cup, have funnel-shaped purple nectaries in their centre and numerous cream-white stamens. The stigmas are also light purple, reminiscent of the colour of the sepals. If the flowers are inclined downwards, allowing the water to slide off like an umbrella, it is to protect the heart of the flower from rotting. The Hellebore is a bushy plant. It does not like to be moved once established, with young shoots taking some time to bloom. The seeds are sown by ants.

Use hellebores like elements in an ancient tapestry, mixing them with more vibrant woodland plants. They are well complemented when planted near Pieris, small-sized rhododendrons, under conifers (especially in windy locations), and surrounded by primroses, wood anemones, corydalis, dicentras, cardamines, or spring-flowering bulbs and snowdrops. You can also accompany them with ferns and shade irises to create a beautiful contrast a little later in the season. They can also be planted in groups, like a bouquet, near the entrance of the house, in a shaded area, to fully enjoy their early flowering. They are suitable for cutting flowers as well as in flower beds, borders, or even containers. Over time, Hellebore flowers do not fade like most other flowers, but dry up.

Each Hellebore, resulting from sowing, is unique in flower colour: thus, slight variations in colour may exist between two plants, which is normal and inevitable. However, if the difference is too significant and distorts the desired effect, we will refund or replace the affected plant.