Helleborus SP SOPHIE^®

Hellebore (Lenten rose) is not a new plant to Czech and Slovak gardens. I remember those flowering stems that surprisingly pushed through the snow in late winter and I kept asking grandma how come that a plant can flower while there is still snow on the ground. These evergreen perennials are still very popular, mainly thanks to newly hybridized varieties with fantastic flowers. Spring Promise^® series was developed and bred by Josef Heuger in Germany, and consists of very attractive varieties of large flowers of various shapes and colours.

SOPHIE^® is a fascinating Lenten rose variety from Spring Promise^® series with large, 5-7 cm across flowers of soft yellow-green colour and profusion of burgundy red dots. Young flowers are nodding, and turn to the sky when the stamens start to fall off. Stems are strong and upright, 35-40 cm tall. Leaves are leathery, deep green, palmately divided into 5 leaflets. SOPHIE^® thrives in partial shade.

Hellebore likes heavy, evenly moist, neutral to alkaline, rich in humus soil in dappled shade or filtered sun. This hybrid will prefer at least half a day with direct sunlight. Fertilizing will increase flowering and help the leaves remain strong and nice throughout the winter. Grow it somewhere near your house entrance or close to the window you look out of frequently so that you can enjoy the plant when it starts flowering since at that time the weather outside is not yet ideal for walking around the garden. The flowers can cheer up a number of grey and dull days of late winter therefore thumbs up for hellebore! All parts of the plant are poisonous. Hardy to min. -29°C (USDA zone 5).

Last update 04-04-2018