Helleborus sternii Flame

Hellebore x sternii Flame is a lovely variety that bears beautiful clusters of flowers with changing colours, both mauve pink, salmon pink and green pink.

This hybrid hellebore is the result of a cross-breeding between the Corsican Hellebore (Helleborus argutifolius), with glaucous green leaves, green flowers and good hardiness, and the magnificent Helleborus lividus, native to the island of Majorca, with low hardiness, compact growth, small often marbled leaves, and stems and flowers of a plum colour.

Hellebore sternii Flame has dense growth, with strong upright stems of a purple-brown colour, giving it an unique habit. Arranged in terminal clusters, the flowers bloom from February to April, starting as mauve pink then turning green pink towards the end of flowering. The leaves, tough and evergreen, are dark green with white veins, and are finely cut along the edges, adding extra appeal to the plant.

Unlike oriental hellebores, Hellebore x sternii Flame grows in the sun (it tolerates partial shade in hot regions) in any well-draining and permeable soil, and can withstand stony and limestone soils. Very hardy, it can withstand cold and dry winters, but it dislikes waterlogged soil during winter.

Plant it in a rockery, on a slope, along a path, in a meadow garden or a romantic garden, alongside heucheras, botanical tulips, ornamental garlic and evergreen grasses.