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penny1947_gw

New to Hellebores and questions

penny1947
20 years ago

I just purchased the Lenten Rose (red Lady) yesterday from a local nursery as I am craving to see a bit of green after a very cold winter here in western NY. The plant is in a little 3" pot and it is about 6 inches tall. I am still in shock at what I paid for it so I don't want to lose it.

Right now I have it on a shelf with other plants in a west facing window until in warms up enough to plant it outside. Will it be ok in the 3inch nursery pot or should I repot it as it will be at least a month before it warms up enough to be planted out. How tall do Hellebores get? I am thinking of putting it in a bed along my front porch that has a red maple tree shading that area for part of the day. When I went to purchase this plant, I thought it was going to be a dormant shrub with hardwood stems. I was very surprised to find out that it was a flowering perennial with fleshy stems so now I am at a quandary about caring for it.

Penny

Comments (3)

  • razorback33
    20 years ago

    If the roots aren't emerging from the bottom of the pot, I would leave it in the same pot until the soil temperatures are above 50 degrees. Before planting, move the plant outdoors for 1-2 weeks so the plant will become acclimated to changing temperatures. The Helleborus x hybridus(Lenten Rose)reaches a mature height of about 1-1.5 ft. and over several years will form a very large clump. The plant should be sited in a mostly summer shaded, neutral, well drained soil. If you have clay in the soil, as I do, a good rule of thumb is to mix a handful of dolomitic lime(powdered form)into the soil before planting. Once established, the Lenten Rose is remarkably drought tolerant.
    Good Luck with the young one!

    BTW, All Helleborus are expensive, everywhere! But, you can look forward to your own seedlings and more flowering plants in the coming years. I started with a few about 15 years ago and now have hundreds.
    Rb

  • penny1947
    Original Author
    20 years ago

    Thank you Rb,
    I decided to move it out to my unheated mudroom which stays a bit cooler than inside the house since it was grown in an unheated greenhouse. And it seems to be happy there. The roots seems fine....nothing emerging from the bottom so it will probably be ok until I can plant it out. The bed I will put it in gets a little early morning sun and a little filtered sunlight later in the afternoon so it should do well there also. While most of our soil here is composed of clay we have been amending it over the past two years and it is well draining now. I think it will make a very nice addition to that flower bed. I thought maybe it was expensive because of the area I live it. A lot of plants are much higher priced here than they were back home in Louisiana

    Thank you again for all the info! I feel a little better now.
    Penny

  • gardeningartist
    20 years ago

    I am new to this species as of 2 yrs. ago. I am in zone 7B, not like yours, but they have been remarkable plants for me. I now have a couple of hundred seedlings. I am so excited... Can't wait to see what happens from here.

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