Helleborus hybridus Magic Double Red

Helleborus Magic Double Red is a variety of the Magic series with variable flowers. Its double flowers are different from one plant to another, sometimes even on the same plant. Most often in shades of red and old pink, the corollas are occasionally bicoloured, pastel or more colourful, adorned with small dots, spots and contrasting streaks. Hellebore is a robust and hardy plant that will enliven borders, the ground under shrub beds, flower beds and pots on the terrace. Easy to grow, even in heavy soil, it will thrive in shade or non-burning sun.

Native to Greece, Turkey, and the central and eastern Caucasus, Helleborus orientalis, also known as Lenten Rose, is a perennial plant of the buttercup family that readily hybridizes with other species to produce hybrids with very varied colours and forms. No variety names are given to these hybrids; they are distinguished by shape and colour characteristics. Oriental Hellebore is a hardy plant that tolerates temperatures down to -15°C, naturally growing in forests, thickets, and clearings up to 2,000 m altitude.

Helleborus Magic Double Red forms a compact and leafy clump, about 40 cm (16in) in all directions, of palmate, slightly toothed, dark green and glossy, evergreen basal leaves made up of 7 to 9 thick leaflets. They only live for 8 months and are regularly replaced by new leaves. Between February and April, a bunch of double flowers 4 to 5 cm (2in) in diameter forms among the foliage. These are cup-shaped and inclined with two to three rows of satin petals increasing in size from the center of the flower to the outer corolla. They are inclined downwards, letting water slide off like an umbrella, to protect the heart of the flower from rotting. Hellebore does not like to be moved once established, as the young plants take some time to flower. The seeds are sown by ants. 

Use hellebores as elements of an ancient tapestry, mixing them with woodland plants in brighter colours. These perennials are highlighted close to Pieris, modest-sized rhododendrons, under conifers (especially on windy sites), 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 be planted in groups near the entrance of the house, in the shade to fully enjoy their early flowers. They are suitable for cut flowers and in borders, flower beds, or containers… Over time, Hellebore flowers do not fade like the majority of other flowers, but dry up and remain decorative for a long time.