Hellebore

Hellebore   

Botanical name: Helleborus orientialis

Bloom type: Flower

Commonly called Lenten rose, hellebores add a pleasing late winter color, texture, and style to a garden. Plant  in areas between deciduous shrubs and under trees or naturalized in woodland areas. Hellebores display glossy, evergreen leaves and rose-like flowers, which bloom in winter or early spring. Though they are commonly called a “rose,” they are not in the rose family. Actually, they're more closely related to buttercups since both belong to the Ranunculus family. They can be the stars of the late winter to spring garden as specimen plants, in masses as a foil for spring bulbs and could even be used as a ground cover. The plant grows hardy in USDA zones 5 through 9. They can grow in groups ranging from 18 to 30 inches wide.