A slave to the Goddess Flora shares his garden adventures.
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Although this could very well be a picture of me finding a new treasure at a favorite nursery, it's actually an illustration by David Catrow for a children's book called Plantzilla.
On Saturday, I had the pleasure of visiting one of my favorite garden cities, Portland, Oregon, attending their Yard, Garden, and Patio Show with pal Alison, and visiting several great nurseries. At the Y,G, & P show, there was a large display of winter flowering plants assembled by the Hardy Plant Society of Oregon. There were lots of great blooms on display but my favorite was this bowl of floating hellebore blossoms.
A great way to display these flowers whose faces usually bow demurely toward the ground.
No wonder that it's often done to show the huge variety of heavenly hellebores.
Don't want to pick that many blooms? A smaller bowl is also very effective.
I didn't intend to buy any more hellebores on this trip but this display convinced me that my garden needed more yellows to balance the others.
Do you have a favorite hellebore or do you love them all? Does anyone not like them? What could be better? Shade tolerant, nice evergreen foliage that fills in nicely around herbaceous plants that offer them shade in the summer and die back beneath the foliage in the winter, and stunning winter blooms that dance in the wind.
Much more to come from a thoroughly enjoyable day of plant shopping.
Before you read any further, be warned that there will be graphic and close up images of the reproductive organs of plants. There will be pollen laden anthers, naked stigma, and racy petals. If this sort of thing offends you, perhaps you should be out picketing in front of a florist shop and not reading the following post.
I went to Bark and Garden to check it out, not to buy plants and certainly not any more helebores.
But the sun shone on and through them making them glow with magical colors.
Although I kept saying no, no, they kept nodding their heads yes, yes.
Some were demure and flirty.
While others brazenly lifted their skirts as if to say "hello sailor."
This dreamy creamy yellow with burgundy edges called 'Apricot Blush' is striking!
The next two pictures are of the same flower. First with the sun shining through the petals.
And now with a flash added. Pretty cool flower, right?
Does this remind you of anything?
No, It couldn't be.
No resemblance at all.
Ahem, no, nothing at all scary at this little shop of ...hellebores.
I'm fond of the nearly black flowers of this variety.
I remember fondly quite a few years ago when Dan Hinkley showed up at the Northwest Flower and Garden Show with a whole slew of his newly created double hellebores. They were the hit of the flower show, the "it" plant that everyone wanted and many people were carrying them out of the convention center. At $50.00 a gallon, they were a little too pricey for my wallet back then. The "Heronswood Doubles" are still around, have come considerably down in price and I run into them at nurseries every now and then. While these aren't the Heronswood doubles, whenever I see any double hellebores, I think of that time and smile.
Here is Onyx Odessy in the sun. It's pretty spectacular and very dark!
Onyx Odessy again.
As Ciscoe would say Oh la la! One of these came home with me!
'Cotton Candy' is amazing with that sweet blush of pink. It also found herself in my cart.
There were so many fabulous plants at B&G that I could have easily filled the car but I kept reminding myself that I didn't need a single plant. I came away with four hellebores, an agave stricta, and another Leucothoe fontanesiana 'Rainbow.'
So, if you hear of a flesh eating plant growing in Tacoma, you'll know from whence it came. And remember, whatever they offer you, don't feed the plants!
