Happy St. Patrick’s Day! For those of you lucky enough to have Hellebores, we would like to remind you of an important task that you need to do NOW. Typically we don’t have ice into mid-March and Hellebores can be pruned earlier in the winter months; but for many of us yesterday was the first time we could actually lift leaves out of the snow to get a closer peak at these beauties waiting to make their appearance.

In his book, The Layered Garden, David Culp writes about Hellebore Culture. “Flowers of hellebores in the acaulescent group present themselves much more attractively when not surrounded by browning disfigured foliage from the previous year. The best time to remove the old leaves is in late January or early February, before the flower buds start to push out of the ground. As with epimediums, if the job is neglected until the flower stalks have begun to grow among the old leaves, it actually takes far more care and time. Many a flower has been lopped off by mistake when this pruning is done too late, in haste.” [Page 204]
To prune your Hellebores, simply lift the leaves and carefully cut away at the base of the stem. Be very careful not snip the emerging buds. Discard the leathery leaves rather than composting to limit any fungal disease the old foliage may harbor. Get ready to enjoy the show!