September 20, 2010
Christmas Rose Find It On The Greek Slopes
When the last chrysanthemum finally succumbs to a hard freeze, most of us bid goodbye to garden bloom until the snowdrops and crocus wake up in the spring. But the Christmas rose, white and waxy as an orange blossom, blooms bravely despite ice and snow and freezing winds. Lashing sleet may cut and bruise the pearly blossoms, but unopened buds will later unfurl more of the exquisite flowers. If the gardener covers the clump while the blizzard continues, he will find his blossoms unharmed when the harsh weather yields to ordinary winter days.
Helleborus niger is known as the Christmas rose because of its habit of blooming near Christmastime. Sometimes it opens its first buds before the end of October but more often in November and December; it is usually in full bloom in December and January. In humid climates its growth is rapid and its blossoms large.
Planted less frequently than the Christmas rose is H. orientalis, which is called the Lenten rose; it catches spring snow in its uplifted purple-tinged cups.
These winter-blooming aristocrats of the flower border will not endure the neglect that cosmos and marigolds thrive on. They demand a sheltered location, ideally under a shrub or tree which will give them the summer shade and shed its leaves to provide winter sun. They require a well-drained soil rich in humus and nutrients. Spending much thought in selecting their location and care in preparing the soil for them will pay dividends in healthy plants and many perfect blooms.
Their native habitat is along the rocky slopes of Greece and adjacent lands, where their black, fleshy roots go deep into the earth for moisture a long way from the landscape lighting and cultivation they receive in the landscape. As they have few surface lateral roots, they demand deep and thorough watering and excellent drainage.
Spring or Fall Planting
Reputedly difficult to transplant and slow to establish themselves in new locations, hellebores may be introduced into the garden in spring or in autumn. Many gardeners prefer late-fall transplanting of plants in bud or bloom, as there is often more ground moisture at that time and plants can continue growth without suffering from drought.
Whenever artificial irrigation is used, as it is in Colorado at the edge of the Rockies, spring planting certainly proves satisfactory.
The leaves and flowers of H. niger and H. orientalis spring, like violets, from the basal clump. They produce the largest and most strikingly beautiful flowers. Two lesser-known hellebores. H. foetidus and H. lividus (H. corsicus), natives of islands in the Mediterranean, probably need milder climates than do our lovely Christmas roses.
Not too easily found in general catalogs, both H. niger and H. orientalis are offered by many rock garden specialists, as are certain hybrids in named varieties. With infinite patience, they can also be grown from seed. This does not always mature, however; its viability is often uncertain and it takes three years to produce bloom on a seedling plant. The gardener who is interested enough to make crosses and grow his seedlings on to maturity may produce a specimen plant better than any now known.
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Filed under Rose Garden by Kent Higgins
