I’M not sure what’s happened to my Christmas roses this year as there seems to be little sign of flower buds!

I am of course talking about my Helleborus niger which have over the last few years provided early colour during the Christmas period. I suspect the reason for the rather later flowering is the weather, as it has been quite wet but also warm.

Over the weekend we did see some frost and snow, so I am hoping this will give my Christmas roses the signal that it’s time to bloom.

Interesting, newly-planted Christmas roses are deciduous over winter until they become established; when established they become evergreen. However, in the autumn it’s best to cut the foliage to ground level; by doing this you will benefit from a showier display, especially from established plants.

Don’t worry about the Helleborus foliage as this will soon regrow and will be quite established as the flowers fade.

Helleborus niger produces seeds quite freely following flowering and these are easy to collect, and – being quite large seeds – are easy to handle to sow. I would suggest two seeds to a small pot and topping the pot with horticultural grit. Then you only need to wait for germination – which will take a full year!

Once the seeds have germinated, thin them to one seedling per pot: note that hellebores hate root disturbance so dislike transplanting, hence the direct sow method. Although Hellebores produce a wonderful and colourful display at a time when there is little else in flower at this time of the year, in fact they are not flowers at all. The blooms are actually colourful bracts, which are a modified leaf. Still they do make a welcome sight.

Similar to the Christmas rose is the Lenten rose, Helleborus orientalis, which blooms a little later, hence its name, although this particular species has been hybridised resulting in many varieties that have blooms which come in a range of colours and shades. Many of these have marked or blotched veins, even semi and fully double forms.

Helleborus are shade-loving plants that prefer to be grown in dappled light rather than direct sunlight, and they also like the ground moist, so are great for hedge lines or woodland areas.

There are quite a few Hellebores species, though H. niger and H. orientalis are the ones most commonly seen growing in gardens. One species of Helebourus which seems to do well in my garden is Helleborus argutifolous, which is more commonly known as the Holly-leaved Hellebore or Corsican Hellebore. Unlike the above hellebores, this particular species makes quite a large plant at around 120cms tall. From its name, you may have guessed its leaves resemble those of holly. Well its leaves do have small spikes which are uncomfortable to handle, nevertheless it does make a striking plant as you can see from my photograph.

You may also have noticed it is beginning to produce its yellow-green bell shape flowers. It must be a good garden plant, as it has gained the Royal Horticultural Society’s Award of Garden Merit.

A word of warning if you decide to grow Helleborus, though: do be aware that all parts of the plants are poisonous, as Hellebores contain cardiac glycosides, which has a similar action to the foxglove, so handle with care!