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Nothing dull about hellebores

Midstep in the crosswalk I overhead the man in front of me say, “There’s just nothing in our yard right now. I mean, nothing is blooming.” It was all I could do to prevent myself from popping into his conversation — like that AFLAC duck on television — and blurting out “Hellebores!” Thank heaven for hellebores. These things flower no matter how cold it gets; in fact, hellebores actually prefer the cool weather. And when the hellebores bloom, you know spring is not far behind.

The flowers come in white, pink, rose, crimson, purple, black and chartreuse, and both double and singles. They look dainty, but the leaves are like leather. The leaves are divided like an outstretched hand, except this hand has seven to nine “fingers.” You don’t have to pronounce the name right to grow them, but it’s a good place to start. The experts say “hell-a-bore,” but this plant is anything but a bore. “Every year they are such a treat. You look outside and see hundreds of these flowers blooming,” says Audrey Metcalfe.

Audrey and Jim Metcalfe run Honeyhill Farms Nursery from their home in Southwest Portland. The thrill of breeding new varieties of hellebore is what makes Jim Metcalfe’s heart (he’s a retired cardiologist) flutter. It all started with one Lenten Rose hellebore that reseeded and bloomed profusely all along their hillside. “I think people question a plant that blooms in winter,” Audrey says. “They think it’s been forced into flower, so it is difficult for new gardeners to understand how easy it is to grow.” And that is true. Most garden-variety hellebores are easy to plant and require even less care thereafter.

To plant, dig a hole about a foot deep, and add mulch and a little slow-release fertilizer, such as Osmocote, into the soil that you dig out. Replace about half the soil mixture into the planting hole. Plunk in the hellebore and refill the sides (make sure the soil is level). In autumn, if you feel like it, give it another dose of slow-release fertilizer and 1/4 cup of lime, and top it off with mulch. You’ll see the flowers by late February. See? Flowers when nothing is blooming in the garden. So next time you’re at the garden center, head for the hellebores, and you won’t have me tossing out non sequiturs in crosswalks.

Here are some good gardening books that can help you and your hellebores: “Gardener’s Guide to Growing Hellebores,” by Graham Rice and Elizabeth Strangman, Timber Press, $19.95; and “Winter Ornamentals,” by Dan Hinkley, Sasquatch Press, $9.95.

What to plant near hellebores:

• Cyclamen
• Crocus
• Camellia
• Witch hazel
• Heather
• Daphne
• Rockcress

To-do list

• Pick weeds while they’re small.
• Cut back clematis. A good rule of thumb for deciduous varieties (the kind that lose their leaves in winter): If it blooms in spring, go easy on it. Trim to control its tangled locks. If it blooms in summer, prune it hard. Leave about 12 inches of vine.

Garden gossip

• Gardeners night out: Garden celebrities Ann Lovejoy, Lucy Hardiman, Sean Hogan and Eamonn Hughes talk about new trends in gardening at this fund-raiser for the Metro Master Gardener program. You’ll find garden art, plants, door prizes — you name it! The event runs from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. Tuesday, March 4, in the Smith Center Ballroom, Portland State University Smith, 1825 S.W. Broadway. Cost is $25 at the door.
• Congratulations to the professionals who put together the garden “Sweet Anticipation.” The garden featured new plants for 2003 and took “best of show” at the Yard, Garden & Patio Show at the Oregon Convention Center earlier this month. Among the showstopper plants: Podophyllum “Kaleidoscope” and Brunnera “Jack Frost.”