Hellebores, known as the Christmas or Lenten rose in the northern hemisphere, are welcome harbingers of spring.
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While there are a number of worthwhile species for collectors, it is mainly H. orientalis, which hybridises readily, that has become the mainstay of garden collections. The branched flower stems with leafy bracts and nodding cup shaped flowers may be grown in containers for brief periods of indoor decoration and in garden beds, where they will continue to grow on for many years.
Flower colour ranges from pale green or white through to pink, red and magenta, often attractively specked inside. As generally valuable low maintenance ground cover that prefers semi-shade and well-drained but moist soil over late spring and summer, many varieties will surprise you by their ability to cope with full sun and comparatively dry ground in winter and early spring. All, however, are frost hardy.
Although hellebores may be grown from seed, colour variants will be common. The best known or most desired colours should be retained by vegetative propagation – root division after flowering – anytime through to early autumn.
Fertilise the plants with blood and bone in mid winter and an all-purpose plant food in early spring at which time any old, raggedy foliage many be cut off.
GROWING asparagus is a challenge in more than one sense of the word. It takes up a great deal of space in a small garden and the bed needs to remain undisturbed for at least 20 years. On the other hand the flavour is enhanced by the immediency of picking and bunches of spears are expensive to buy off the shelf.
Well drained, rich, friable soil is the best growing mix with annual toppings of compost and manure in late winter. Traditional beds take the form of trenches with a ridge down the middle over which the crowns roots are draped. Crown should be 10cms below the surface when the soil is replaced.
Refrain from cutting first and even second year spears to allow plants to establish, after which you should be able to harvest up to 10 spears annually from each crown using a sharp knife to cut 3-5cm below the soil surface. Fresh asparagus is a source of vitamins C and E.
