Current obsession: Hellabores

I am so enjoying the shop's new location, as we now have a nice large window that brings in great light and allows me to have plants at long last.   I was so delighted to see one of my long time favourite plants come through on the market this month- the stately and beautiful Hellabore.

Hellabore plants are more often grown outdoors, but these late winter/early spring bloomers are perfect to have indoors when things are dismal and wintery outside.  They are perennials, and once they have bloomed for you and spring has come you can plant them in a shady spot in the garden and enjoy them year after year.  You do need to wait until they are finished blooming before replanting, they are finicky about being moved and taken out of the pot especially when busy putting on such a fine show. 

Indoors we've noticed in the shop that they need a lot of watering, the roots are so dense in the pots that you will likely need to water every few days.  If you wait too long you will know, as the flowers will droop down quickly.  Catch it in time and a good soak will perk them right up again.

They come in creamy whites, greens, pinky reds and purples, and even a deep plummy tone that is almost black. Sometimes they are available as a cut flower and their shorter stems mean they work best in lower arrangements rather than bouquets or tall pieces.

The delicate flowers are actually sepals rather than petals, which means they are a protective cross between a leaf and a petal, and this makes the blooms of the hellabore a little longer lasting than many other plants. Though often referred to as a winter rose, they are actually from the buttercup family.  Indoors remember to keep them in a lower light spot, they won't do well in too much sun.