How Much Shade for Hellebores?

Garden centre had the somewhat tired looking Hellebores on the "Discounted shelf" yesterday, they looked neglected as is usual for a Shed, but sorting through them there were plenty with strong buds coming ... so I bought a couple of dozen! at £1.60 each ...

I'm thinking to plant them in a new "woodland walk" that I am making ... but how much shade will they take? (or, indeed, how much Sun?)

 

Shade is a hard thing to define really. They need, prefer if you will, dappled shade. So not totally sunless and not in bright sunlight either.

 

The canopy is quite thick, but not very wide. I could perhaps fell some of the trees to thin the canopy (which would make the area more interesting), and I'm thinking about planting some more trees to "widen" it into a dead area between the wood-bit and some Leylandii - either side of the "Vegetable Patch Vista" A-to-V

Rather than trying to describe it here I thought it might be easier to stick a page on my Blog with some photos etc:
http://kgarden.wordpress.com/projects/woodland-walk/

if you have suggestions for the best "plot" for Hellebores I'd appreciate it. Perhaps the key is the flowering time, to not detract from the Snowdrops. Other than that I can plant on the West facing side - either under Scots Pines S-A, or Silver Birch A-N (where I plan to put Bluebells - so they would be quite late, relative to the Hellebores?), or on the North side, but all trees deciduous, along the path W-E

Hope that makes sense?!

 

As posted earlier, dappled shade is the shade of choice but we have Hellebores growing in full sun, in what is basically a scree bed (it was an old rockery so is very freed draining) and they absolutely love it, flowering really well every year, self seed and are very happy. Just goes to show how plants adapt!

 

Indeed I do remember ... and I'll bring my shovel, this year, for those soup-bowl sized Coums! (or maybe they are C. hederifolium?)

I've had a look. 12 are Christmas Rose / H. niger, and the other half are Lenten (some "Hillier Hybrids" or other)

I like the way you've got them, I think I'll aim for behind the snowdrops

Nope, not that type - H. argutifolius (Good old Google telling me its not "angustifolia" as my memory was trying to persuade me!!)

Added that to my Gardening Notes book, thanks. The White flowers look nice "nude" too

 

P.S. Anyone any opinions on my location for Bluebells ?

 

Kristen, I'd put the bluebells in amongst the silver birch, as you thought. They grow just about anywhere so I don't think they'd have a problem.

An area near us is a sunless, very steep hillside with a dense covering of trees. You couldn't walk up it. Underneath during spring it is smothered with bluebells and it looks fantastic, just a blue carpet. I wish I could get a photograph but it's beside a dangerous area of road with blind bends and no footpath.

 

Thanks, the Silver Birch area it is then

 

Ah yes, of course, I remember that they used to be called "Corsican Hellebore" ... from now on I'm Fred and I'll call you Bill, OK? :(

"The mature ones don't take kindly to being dug up"

So based on that should I plant out these rather pathetic chaps in 9cm pots (likely to be dry where they will be, and with hosepipe ban little chance they will be looked after well), or grow them on in pots until Autumn and then plant out from (probably by then) 2L pots? I was favouring growing them on to try to give them flying-start when planted out, but I don't want them to resent it!.

Didn't know about the leaves, Ta for that. (I probably ought to wear gloves all the time in the garden ... rarely do though ...)

 

Right, I'll pot them up then.

 

I have quite a few patches and they seem happy from fairly deep shade to dappled under trees. I think the latter is best.
What seems more important is the soil, mine do really well in a woodlandy lightish leafmouldy sort of soil which I have in a shaded woody part of the garden.
They get very feeble in heavy and clay soil I've found and hate being too dry.


Hope it goes well!