Hellebores in zone 9?
Jason_D_B
11 years ago
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gardengal48 (PNW Z8/9)
11 years agoJason_D_B
11 years agoRelated Discussions
WANTED: Seeds or Plants!
Comments (2)there is a person in southern california who has successfully grown hellebores for several years in a warm climate....reportedly zone 10a. I would say go for it and report back later. you may be able to help better understand the limits of hellebores. I have heard of problems in Louisiana and Florida, but this could be from cultural conditions or any variety of factors. Here is a link that might be useful: hellebores in ca...See MoreHellebores for zone 4
Comments (24)jgwoodard, In all honesty, the seeds that I have sought are based purely on a selfish desire to grow certain genus/species that I simply want in my garden. I seem to have only tried genus that claim hardy to zone 7, and, as much as I live in zonal denial, I still have not tried growing any zone 8 genus/species from seed... now there's a thought. ;o) Since I am, by nature, a true pack rat, then I should still have the original article about 'The Provenance Theory' which I had read a good ten years ago. This article has truly stuck in my mind as it simply was a validation of what I had believed, and tried, all along. Simply stated, it is believed that when a seed begins its life in a colder zone than it has been living and growing, some genetic memory is 'unlocked'... brought on by the extreme cold conditions that the seed has now found itself in... nature's plants sole purpose is survival and continuance of its species and, therefore, will access its genetic memory and ability to do so under much different conditions than 'normal'. I start all of my seed in outdoor seed beds where nature can provide all of the cold stratification necessary to turn the key to this genetic memory. I laugh at your heresy comment, as both John Dudley (Elizabeth Town Hellebores) and Roy Herold ('The Arisaema Page' and breeder of many well known Hosta, including 'Red October') find my growing habits 'shocking'. When I had emailed John Dudley to tell him of just how wonderful his H. lividus seedlings were doing, he sent me an email in return where I could just about see his jaw hitting the floor... of course I have promised him that I would continue to keep him up to date on how things progress with them over the years. Of the 30 - 50 H. lividus plants that I have growing, still in their original seed bed, all have remained evergreen throughout the winter... even from their first year as small seedlings! I have found a great gardening friend in Roy Herold over the years, through our local New England NARGS group, and he now just laughs and shakes his head when I tell him of each new species that I 'try' to grow from seed. ;o) As a matter of fact, when spring does arrive here in my zone 5b/4a garden the first thing that I do is to check to see if the Paeonia cambessedessii, that I grew from seed years ago, has survived another winter. So far so good. I just hope that I won't have to eat my words any time soon. The H. lividus really haven't received much of any winter sun, as where they are sited, the snow usually covers them fully and remains for a long time. H. argutifolius 'Janet Starnes' also does not receive winter sun... although it is sited in a true south facing section of the garden... just off my back deck, the snow is shoveled over top of it and, therefore, it is often covered by three feet or more of the white stuff. The three H. argutifolius that I have growing further out in the 'open' garden, get much sun and wind throughout the winter yet do have snow around their base (if we have a 'mild' winter they may have 4"-6" or so, when we have a 'true New England' winter then they can be covered over completely by the white stuff) I plan on moving a 'drift' of the H. lividus out into the open garden this spring, well drained soil of course, and will continue to record how they perform. I must say, though, that a mature green house grown H. lividus plant given to me by Roy Herold, did survive out in the open garden as well. I had thought that I had lost it as it did not show its head in the spring, all of a sudden... there it was!...it didn't show its pretty foliage until summer last year. :o) Bruce, Yes, one of my cats is sometimes too excited about watching the chickens and just can't resist making them all scatter and fly up into the trees squawking.. the others just ignore them. And, oh you are so right about the barnyard 'king of the roost' who doesn't put up with much guff from anyone or anything. And, by the way, I would love the opportunity to give a fellow 'Moo-Hampshirite' a try at growing H. lividus in their garden... sounds like a trade coming up. ;o)...See MoreWhen to feed Hellebores - Zone 8
Comments (2)I'm not sure you need to fertilize them - they don't generally require it and I've never fertilized an inground planted hellebore in my life! Container plantings are different. If you feel you must, I'd use an all purpose fertilizer applied sparingly and when the plant is in active growth - late winter to early spring....See MoreSuccess with hellebores in MN zone 4
Comments (6)All: Hellebores are wonderful plants! Mine are always blooming under the mulch when I take it off in March, and the blooms stay on until at least July for me. Last summer, several of my white xhybridus started reblooming in mid-July, which was an unexpected bonus. Like Ted, I've found xhybridus Royal Heritage a bit underwhelming. The colors I have seem awfully muddy --- most are sort of liverish red. The foliage is always terrific, though. In contrast to the Royal Heritage, I love my Ivory Prince hellebores (Helleborus x nigersmithii 'Walhelivor'). They are listed as hardy to zone 5 or 6 although they've come through the last four winters for me, including last years' January drop from 40 to -15 with no snow cover; I use an oak leaf mulch about 4-5" deep but no other special treatment. Laura...See MoreDianna Hayden
3 years agoAna Sanchez
2 years agogardengal48 (PNW Z8/9)
2 years agoRenee Sebastian
2 years agoRenee Sebastian
2 years agoRenee Sebastian
2 years agoRenee Sebastian
2 years ago
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