Hellebores

Modest mourning blooms
For forty days of fast-tide --
Shy Lenten Roses.





The winter-blooming hellebores (helleborus niger), sometimes called Christmas Roses or Lenten Roses, are in flower now. Nestling half-hidden in fall's dead leaves, the blooms wear understated mourning colors of purple, lavender, white and palest green. Their heads hang down, as if hiding and I had to lift them up to take their pictures. Very hardy, hellebores thrive in dry shade, multiplying and cross pollinating to produce strange and lovely variations on the purple, green, lavender theme. Hellebore was once used medicinally for a variety of ailments including leprosy, jaundice, gout, sciatica, and convulsions but modern herbalists approach it with caution as, like foxglove, too much can kill. (Ah, a future plot twist for Elizabeth?)

I have a little colony of hellebores across the road from my garden and at this time of year it's a delight to see their pretty faces, even if I have to chuck them under their chins to get a look.

As always, remember to mouse over the pictures and click to enlarge. These retiring little flowers are like fireworks when seen close up!