https://www.cutoutandkeep.net/projects/hellebore-filled-brick-planter • Posted by Stephanie Albares
Hellebores (aka: winter roses, Lenten roses) bloom in winter, come in many colours, last for months and are surprisingly cold-hardy. Here’s how to divide them into clumps (free flowers!), as well as a couple of plant ideas for filling out a container.
Hellebores (aka: winter roses, Lenten roses) bloom in winter, come in many colours, last for months and are surprisingly cold-hardy. Here’s how to divide them into clumps (free flowers!), as well as a couple of plant ideas for filling out a container.
Make sure the container soil is ready to go. Add fresh potting soil and mix in a teaspoon or two of water-retaining crystals. This will keep your container going longer between waterings.
Dig up your clump of hellebores, or tip the clump out of the pot, and trim the leaves to 2” stems.
Saw through the thick, bulbous base with a serrated knife. As long as each section has some of the central bulb-y bit, it will grow into a new plant. Plant out your hellebore sections, with 30cm gaps between plants.
Fill out the rest of the planter with other plants. I chose low-growing plants with interesting foliage that don’t mind shade and moderate to damp soil. Golden Japanese rush (Acorus pusillus aurea) and black mondo grass for my tiny clumping grasses, and Australian native violet (Viola hederacea) as a creeping groundcover for everywhere else. These plants can also be easily divided!
Scatter a sprinkling of complete fertiliser (like Osmocote) onto the soil, mulch, and water everything in well.