It is not without reason that the hellebore is called the Christmas Rose. Its flowers develop when most plants are already dormant. Hellebores — depending on the variety — they bloom in early spring or even in winter. The plant produces beautiful white, cream or pinkish flowers with a yellow center.
The perennial is evergreen and does not lose its leaves even during the winter months. That is why the plant is so eagerly chosen for terraces, balconies, but also for houses. It is worth knowing how to take care of it so that it can be a decoration of the interior not only at Christmas.
Resident is a plant from the buttercup family, used in herbal medicine, homeopathy, but above all as an ornamental plant. It is divided into many species and varieties, with the white hellebore (Helleborus niger) and the eastern hellebore (Helleborus orientalis) being the most popular.
It is worth knowing that it occurs naturally in Poland purple helleborealso called reddish (Helleborus purpurascens), having characteristic flowers in this color. As introduced and already established, it also grows in our country green hellebore (Green hellebore).
Hellebore is an extremely resistant plant and rather easy to care for. No wonder it appears more and more often in homes as a window sill or shelf decoration, replacing the previously popular one.
How to care for Christmas? Caring for the plant is not difficult. You just need to provide it with appropriate conditions for development. It grows best in constantly moist, slightly alkaline soil at a temperature not exceeding 16 degrees Celsius. It prefers partial shade, and direct sunlight may harm the plant.
Hellebore needs moderate watering. The soil in the pot should be moist, but not wet. Its excess should be poured from the base, as it could lead to rotting of the roots. You can spray the plant’s leaves, thus increasing the air humidity (important during the heating season) and cleaning the leaves from dust. Let’s do it once every few days, using soft, standing water.
It is worth choosing a suitable place for the hellebore in the house. First of all, he should not stand near the radiator during the heating season. In home cultivation it is not necessary plants. However, we can do it once a year, using a universal fertilizer for flowering plants.
After flowering, after several seasons spent at home, the hellebore can be taken out into the garden, into the ground. It is worth doing this before the end of October.
When grown outdoors, the Christmas rose primarily needs light, permeable, fertile soil with a slightly alkaline reaction and a position protected from the wind.
