One  plant  you can always count on to bloom in winter is  the hellebore. While  they  are often called a Lenten  rose, because  they are  usually blooming during Lent, they are not a rose.  Hellebores are in the buttercup family, and they grow  well in Greensboro; especially in well-drained soil, winter sun, and shade or semi-shade in the summer. In a bed under deciduous trees is perfect.

Two of the best sources for hellebores in  Greensboro are from Janice Nicholson or  from a friend  who  has them as they  can be prolific to  the point of being invasive. Janice  has  a hellebore  nursery at her home, Gethsemane Gardens, selling to local  nurseries and  at the Greensboro  Curb Market on Yanceyville.*  In addition to being easy to grow, and  blooming in  the  dark days of winter,  deer do not like them! Imagine plants that do not attract  the many deer of Guilford  County.  

Hopefully, you enjoyed  yesterday’s  70  degree temperature, blue skies, and warm sunshine as much  as the above  hellebore!

*  reference and more in  formation, here.