Stinking Hellebore Helleborus foetidus
 
Family – Ranunculaceae, Buttercup family
Herbaceous perennial – up to 40 cm tall c40cm spread
Flowering – January to March
Soils - Neutral to alkaline
Position – Full sun or partial shade
 
 
 
A low herbaceous plant with biennial stems that grow in one season and flower and die the following spring, giving way to a new batch of flowering stems. Dark green leathery leaves last over winter in a rosette at the top of each stem, followed by pale green flowers in February and March.
 
Stinking hellebore Helleborus foetidus was first recorded botnaically by Gerard in 15971. .
 
In the wild this plant grows in chalky areas of southern Britain on grassy banks, woodland glades  and scrub. It is very local in distribution. It also occurs throughout Britain and Ireland as an occasional garden escape2..
 
The name refers to the smell when leaves are crushed, a practice that is not advised as this plant is poisonous. It has been used as a folk remedy for worms in children, but is far too toxic to be safe.  Another traditional name was bear’s foot, a name that was also applied to the green hellebore (see below)3..
 
This species is well-established in gardens and easy to grow in a semi shaded or sunny situation. Its flowers are visited by early-emerging bumblebees. It will seed itself around the garden if the seed pods are left to mature. You should wear gloves when cutting back or handling this plant.
 
There is a second native species of Helleborus that grows wild in Britain, in similar situations, the green hellebore, H. viridis subspecies occidentalis. This species is much smaller than H. foetidus and different in appearance, with new leaves and flowers appearing in spring on separate stems. It has bright green pendant flowers, and looks good in a garden situation growing alongside spring flowers such as the wild daffodil Narcissus pseudonarcissus and the primrose Primula acaulis.  It is less tolerant of full sun than H foetidus.
 
The only insect recorded as feeding on either hellebore is Macrosiphum hellebori, an aphid4..
                                                 Green hellebore Helleborus viridis
 
 
References
 
1.  Pearman, D. (2017). The Discovery of the Native Flora of Britain and Ireland, Botanical Society of Britain & Ireland. P.229
 
2.  Stace, C. 2010  New Flora of the British Isles, Third Edition. P. 104.
 
3. Vickery, R. 2019. Vickery’s Folk Flora, An A to Z of the Folklore and Uses of British and Irish Plants. P. 345.
 
4. See the Biological Record Centre database
 
 
Page written by Marc Carlton.  Compiled by Steve Head
Stinking Hellebore Helleborus foetidus
 
Family – Ranunculaceae, Buttercup family
Herbaceous perennial – up to 40 cm tall c40cm spread
Flowering – January to March
Soils - Neutral to alkaline
Position – Full sun or partial shade
 
 
 
A low herbaceous plant with biennial stems that grow in one season and flower and die the following spring, giving way to a new batch of flowering stems. Dark green leathery leaves last over winter in a rosette at the top of each stem, followed by pale green flowers in February and March.
 
Stinking hellebore Helleborus foetidus was first recorded botnaically by Gerard in 15971. .
 
In the wild this plant grows in chalky areas of southern Britain on grassy banks, woodland glades  and scrub. It is very local in distribution. It also occurs throughout Britain and Ireland as an occasional garden escape2..
 
The name refers to the smell when leaves are crushed, a practice that is not advised as this plant is poisonous. It has been used as a folk remedy for worms in children, but is far too toxic to be safe.  Another traditional name was bear’s foot, a name that was also applied to the green hellebore (see below)3..
 
This species is well-established in gardens and easy to grow in a semi shaded or sunny situation. Its flowers are visited by early-emerging bumblebees. It will seed itself around the garden if the seed pods are left to mature. You should wear gloves when cutting back or handling this plant.
 
There is a second native species of Helleborus that grows wild in Britain, in similar situations, the green hellebore, H. viridis subspecies occidentalis. This species is much smaller than H. foetidus and different in appearance, with new leaves and flowers appearing in spring on separate stems. It has bright green pendant flowers, and looks good in a garden situation growing alongside spring flowers such as the wild daffodil Narcissus pseudonarcissus and the primrose Primula acaulis.  It is less tolerant of full sun than H foetidus.
 
The only insect recorded as feeding on either hellebore is Macrosiphum hellebori, an aphid4..
 
                         Green hellebore Helleborus viridis
 
 
References
 
1.  Pearman, D. (2017). The Discovery of the Native Flora of Britain and Ireland, Botanical Society of Britain & Ireland. P.229
 
2.  Stace, C. 2010  New Flora of the British Isles, Third Edition. P. 104.
 
3. Vickery, R. 2019. Vickery’s Folk Flora, An A to Z of the Folklore and Uses of British and Irish Plants. P. 345.
 
4. See the Biological Record Centre database
 
 
Page written by Marc Carlton.  Compiled by Steve Head
           Garden Wildplants
        Garden Wildplants