Hellebore At It's Best

I have this plant near my front door...it had been looking rather weak and spindly, but with the recent warmer spring weather, it seems to have taken off and looks beautiful. Here is some information about this beautiful perennial.
Here in the Pacific Northwest the blooming of hellebores is a favorite late winter reminder that spring is right around the corner. The genus of Helleborus is comprised of 15 different species and belongs to the buttercup family (Ranunculaceae). Hellebores are perennial and largely evergreen. Their flowers provide color and interest in the shade garden when other plants are dormant. In addition, their leaf structure is interesting enough to make them a foundation of the shade garden year-round, even when their flowers are spent. Hellebores are also deer resistant and somewhat drought tolerant.

Hellebores are usually low growing plants with short-stemmed, often toothed, palmate foliage. Their most impressive feature is their five-petal bowl-shaped flowers which appear from late winter into spring in colors as diverse as apricot, yellow, green, metallic blue, slate, dusky pink, maroon and white. In addition, petals may be spotted or picoteed, referring to the narrow band of darker color found on the edge of the petals. Some varieties feature double-petalled flowers, giving them a nostalgic rose-like quality.