Add colour to the late winter garden with this pretty hellebore. The nodding, double flowers are made up of rich pink petals, each with scattering of prominent maroon spots towards their base. Hellebores are wonderful woodland plants, which mix well with other shade lovers like ferns, pulmonarias and primroses.
How to care for Helleborus × hybridus Harvington double pink speckled:
Add lots of well-rotted leaf mould or organic matter to the planting hole. Cut the old leaves back down to the ground in January or February as this will show off the new emerging flowers to best effect. It will also help to get rid of foliar diseases such as Hellebore leaf spot. Apply a generous 5-7cm (2-3in) mulch of well-rotted organic matter around the base of the plant in autumn and provide a top-dressing of general fertiliser each spring. Cut off the seed heads to prevent inferior seedlings colonising.
Flowering period:
- Jan
- Feb
- Mar
- Apr
- May
- Jun
- Jul
- Aug
- Sep
- Oct
- Nov
- Dec
Eventual height:
0.6m
Eventual spread:
0.9m
Soil:
Moderately fertile, moist, well-drained soil
-
This perennial is semi-evergreen so it can lose some of its leaves in winter. In colder regions or more exposed gardens, it may lose them all, but then fresh new growth appears again in spring.
-
Humans/Pets: Harmful if eaten; skin irritant