DATE:    02/05/04
WRITER:  Joey Williamson, 1-888-656-9988
EDITOR:  Susan Bedingfield, (864) 656-3876

Lenten Rose - 
The Glory of the Winter Garden

	By Joey Williamson, Horticulture Specialist,
	Clemson Extension Home & Garden Information Center

	CLEMSON -- Looking for a low-maintenance, easy to grow garden 
plant?  Then consider Lenten Rose for your garden.  
	Lenten rose (Helleborus x hybridus) is an evergreen, 
winter-blooming perennial that does best when grown in woodland shade.
They are very easy to grow if the soil is well drained and improved 
with organic matter.  
	The planting area should be at least lightly shaded. The best 
lighting conditions are where the plants receive winter sun, but mostly 
shade in the summer.  
	Lenten rose grows to 1-1/2 to 2 feet tall and just as wide.  
New leaves are sent up during the winter, as are an abundance of flower 
stalks.  These are hybrids of primarily Helleborus orientalis that have 
been bred for a wide range of flower colors. 
	The 2-inch, nodding flowers of Lenten rose can vary in color 
from white to various shades of pink, lavender and deep purple.  The 
lighter-colored flowers are often attractively spotted with purple. 
	Lenten rose has large, leathery dark-green foliage and is an 
excellent companion plant to ferns, azaleas, and many shade-loving 
woodland wildflowers.  Companion plants with fine-textured foliage 
contrast well with the bold foliage of Lenten rose. 
	These winter-blooming plants rarely need dividing, as do most 
perennials, but make lots of new plants from seeds dropped nearby. 
	 Seedlings can be potted individually and grown in a shady spot 
for the summer.  Fertilize the seedlings every couple of weeks with a 
liquid fertilizer and in the fall plant them in their new garden 
location.  Typically seedling-grown plants will not bloom until the 
second winter.  
	Large clumps of Lenten rose can be divided in October when they
are coming out of dormancy but before they bloom.  However, divided 
plants may take a year or two to recover and to bloom again. 
	Although Lenten rose prefers moist soil, it is amazingly heat
and drought tolerant once established, even with tree root competition
for water.  They will wilt if the soil becomes extremely dry, but if
watered, will perk back up within hours.  Mulching the planting with
leaves, bark or pine needles will help conserve soil moisture during
drought conditions.  
	Lenten rose should be fertilized with either a slow-release 
fertilizer or a well-balanced organic fertilizer in the fall prior to 
the appearance of new leaves and flowers.
	The plant is a disease and insect pest resistant plant, and 
deer rarely bother this plant.  The cold hardiness rating for Lenten 
rose is USDA zones 4-9, so it is cold hardy throughout South Carolina. 
	With all its virtues of easy culture, drought tolerance, and 
beautiful winter blooms, the Lenten rose should be a part of every 
South Carolina garden.
	The Clemson Extension Home & Garden Information Center (HGIC) 
has more information on perennial culture.  Please see also Fact Sheets 
HGIC 1150 Dividing Perennials and HGIC 1153 Growing Perennials.

	******************************************
	For answers to your gardening, pest and food safety questions, 
	visit the Clemson Extension Home & Garden Information Center 
		website at http://hgic.clemson.edu , call us toll-free 
	at 1-888-656-9988, or write to PSA Media Relations, 120 
	Lehotsky Hall, Clemson University, Clemson, S.C. 29634-0129.
				END