Helleborus 'Coseh 6600' HGC ICE'N ROSES® BENNOTTA hellebore, Lenten rose
Helleborus
The genus Helleborus comprises roughly twenty species of perennial plants distributed mainly across Europe and western Asia, especially in the mountainous and sub‑montane regions of the Balkans, the Alps and the Apennines. Direct fossil evidence is lacking, but genetic relationships and present‑day distribution point to a very ancient origin, probably reaching deep into the Tertiary. Hellebores were already known to classical physicians, as shown by the writings of Hippocrates and Pliny the Elder, who used them as drastic medicinal remedies. This is reflected in the Greek etymology of the name, most often interpreted as a combination of helein (to kill) and bora (a deadly food). It refers to the plant’s highly poisonous properties, valued in antiquity as powerful purgatives but easily fatal when used without expertise. The genus received its modern name and place in botany in the mid‑18th century thanks to Carl Linnaeus (1707–1778), who described it in 1753 in Species Plantarum. Hellebores are no novelty in Czech and Slovak gardens either; our grandmothers already enjoyed their flowers in winter and early spring. The only thing that has changed since then are the cultivars and colours, which are ever more numerous and increasingly beautiful. They are evergreen perennials with a remarkably structured flower. The “petals” we see at first glance, white or coloured, are in fact enlarged sepals surrounding a ring of true petals – the corolla segments, usually periwinkle green and occasionally red, which have become tubular and bear the nectaries.
ICE'N ROSES® is an attractive series of early hellebores bred by Josef Heuger from Germany. It is a cross of h. x eriscmithii or h. x ballardiae and h. x hybridus, and Josef Heuger named it in honour of his home town Glandorf: helleborus x glandorfensis. It produces dense tufts with profusion of very large flowers which in warm winters come out in profusion from early December until February. In cold (normal) winters of zones 5-6 blooming starts from late February and lasts almost 3 months. ICE'N ROSES® BENNOTTA belongs among the dark-coloured varieties and makes 5-6 cm wide, rich maroon red flowers of a similar shade as if you were looking through a glass of quality Bordeaux wine against the sun. They are single and decorated with a bunch of light-yellow stamens and a chartreuse crown. Evergreen leaves are leathery, palmate, deep green, and form a compact, reliably showy, and evergreen clump until spring. Stems are deep maroon, slightly over 40 cm tall. Patent No. PP32997 was granted in 2021.
The German nursery Heuger has been breeding these Lenten roses from their HGC collection since 1950’s. No wonder they are considered the top producers of these beautiful plants in Europe. With the Helleborus Gold Collection® (HGC) is a trademark for the best inventions in the field of hybrid hellebores.
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 gloomy days of late winter therefore thumbs up for hellebore! Harmful if eaten. Hardy to at least -29 °C (USDA zone 5).
Last update 19-02-2024
