Helleborus hybridus Pink Spotted

Pink Spotted Oriental Hellebore is a variety that offers exquisite flowering from pale pink to a brighter pink, strongly marked with dark purple, sometimes widely speckled with almost black purple at the heart. It displays large flowers in the heart of winter that give this season an incredible charm. Robust and very hardy, this perennial can be grown in borders and under shrubs as well as in pots. Easy to grow, even in heavy and poorly drained soil, it thrives in shade or non-scorching sun, bringing softness and light.

Originating from the central and eastern Caucasus, the Helleborus orientalis subsp. guttatus, sometimes called Lenten Rose, is a perennial plant of the ranunculaceae family that is distinguished by the strong red to brown punctation of its petals. It is a hardy plant that can withstand temperatures down to -15°C (5°F), naturally growing in forests, thickets and clearings up to 2,000 m (7ft) altitude.

The 'Pink' variety forms a compact, bushy, leafy clump of about 40 cm (16in) in all directions composed of palmate, slightly toothed, dark green and shiny evergreen basal leaves, 30 to 40 cm (12 to 16in) long, composed of 7 to 9 leaflets. They only live for 8 months and are regularly replaced by new leaves.

Between February and April, a bouquet of simple, cup-shaped flowers with 5 broad petals, 5 to 7 cm (2 to 3in) in diameter, is formed. They are inclined downwards, allowing water to slide off like an umbrella to protect the heart of the flower from rotting. Hellebores do not like to be moved once established, as young plants take some time to flower. The seeds are sown by ants.

Use hellebores as elements of an ancient tapestry, mixing them with brightly coloured woodland plants. They are well showcased when planted near Pieris, small-sized rhododendrons, under conifers (especially on wind-exposed sites), and surrounded by primroses, wood anemones, corydalis, dicentras, cardamines, or spring-flowering bulbs and snowdrops. You can also accompany them with ferns and shade-loving 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 shaded areas, to enjoy their early flowering up close. They are suitable as cut flowers and in borders, edges, or even containers. Over time, Hellebore flowers do not wilt like the majority of other flowers but dry up.

Each seed-sown hellebore has a unique flower colour: slight variations in colour may exist between two plants, which is normal and unavoidable. However, if the difference is too significant and distorts the desired effect, we will refund or replace the affected plant.