Helleborephilia

I adore hellebores, and fortunately many of them love growing on our heavy calcareous clay soil. We have a wide range of lenten-rose Helleborus orientalis in colours ranging from pink to deepest wine and lime-green, all with varying degrees of spotting. They self-seed happily, producing new and interesting combinations.

However, although I've tried several times, I can't seem to get the Christmas-rose Helleborus niger established. The main photograph shows the blooms of our most recent acquisition, a hybrid between H. niger and H. argutifolius known as H. x nigercors 'White Beauty'. I'm hoping that the vigour imparted by H.argutifolius (which does grow in our garden) will allow it to establish.

Coincidentally, Chris and I went out botanising this afternoon, and came across a lovely clump of H.orientalis, growing quite happily in an otherwise rather boring grass verge (see extra). I'm not sure whether they had been planted or had arisen from seed, but they made a wonderful display.