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| Picture by Angelina Ho, Pixabay |
Stepping out my front door this Valentine’s morning in minus 6 degrees, I couldn’t help but notice the astonishing clumps of hellebores underneath a dusting of snow. Known as Christmas Rose (Heleborus niger) or Lenten Rose (H. orientalis,) my hellebores seemed impervious to the cold. Lenten roses get their name because they appear at the start of the Christian season of Lent. All winter long their leaves flatten slightly to the ground, but remain as evergreen perennials. Their new growth usually appears during late January and February, with their drooping cup-shaped flowers emerging soon after. There’s a reason these flowers sag down.
