A boost to winter..... - Page 2

Hellebores are one of my favourites. I took this pic a couple of weeks ago.

I love those spotted ones

Hi Nutcutlet. Iris stylosa has been renamed I. unguicularis - harder to say and spell!

I was given a double white with maroon speckles hellebore from the breeding programme at Hadlow College, where they have a National Collection (Plant Heritage). It's in a deep pot on a shelf opposite my kitchen window and looks great, just thinking about coming into flower now. The first year it was near a H. hybridus variety but nothing happened. Last year there was no other hellebore anywhere near but one flower produced 8 seeds. As it should be sterile I was very excited. I sown them in modules and left them under the greenhouse staging. Now I'm even more excited because I have 6 seedlings just emerging. Fingers and other things crossed!

Could get something exciting there greenjude. Maybe a new variety/

.Thanks for the Iris name. It's not having a good flowering. Lack of baking last 'summer' I expect.

Thanks. It'll probably take 3 years before I see any flowers but I'm sure it'll be worth the wait. I'll post a pic of Mum when the flowers have opened. She's a real cutie so I have hopes of the offspring.

Mine are always left in the ground. They do well there. Need a deep pot if you're potting. Not knowing where things are going has often stopped me planting. Now I realise it's better to plant. There isn't much that can't be moved if you change your mind.

They'll do nicely then even if you forget about them.

Verdun, you're right, of course, it should be in the ground, but at the moment there's nowhere suitable and hellebores tend to sulk if they're disturbed. The head gardener at Hadlow advised me to keep it in a deep pot if it had to be potted, and it's looking quite happy, in spite of being flattened by the recent snow.

For anyone interested in Kent or nearby, there are some open days at Hadlow College, Broadview Gardens on Sat/Sun 16/17 Feb, 23/24 Feb and 2/3 March. The gardens are open (and free!) all the time but open days have guided tours too, for £3. Some of the hellebore beds are interplanted with snowdrops and look great.