Honeymoon® Tropical Sunset Lenten Rose

Light Needs

Full Shade to Partial Shade

(0 - 4 Hours Of Direct Sunlight)

Mature Height

1.5-2 Feet

Mature Spread

1.5-2 Feet

Growing Zones

4 to 9

What a unique coloration for a Lenten Rose! Creamy yellow with tints of green and burgundy, edged with burgundy with a mostly white center, accented by deep green leaves. One of the first flowers to appear in the spring, sometimes even arriving in late winter when the snow is still falling in some regions, Lenten Rose is a beautiful sight for gardeners who long for color each spring! In late winter, early spring the buds start to swell and burst open with large 3 inch blooms. The petals are unique, as they are sepals, a tough leathery petal-like appendage that admirably weathers the cold and snow and everything that winter can throw at it and looks beautiful the whole time. They are typically evergreen in most regions of their hardiness zone.

Native to the mountains of Europe, specifically the Balkan region of what once was Yugoslavia, east along the Adriatic Sea to Greece and Turkey, there are 17 species of Hellebores. Lenten Rose is named such because of its timing, blooming around the time of the religious holy days of Lent. Honeymoon Tropical Sunset Lenten Rose will be no exception, it will bloom in late winter, early spring, bringing you dozens of hardy beautiful flowers for several weeks. Due to their tough construction and leathery leaves and sepals, Lenten Rose are able to withstand deer and rabbit browsing on them, and will typically not be a target of these animals. Coastal gardeners will appreciate their salt tolerance, and all gardeners will appreciate their drought tolerance once they are fully established in the garden.

Honeymoon® Tropical Sunset Lenten Rose Care

Hellebores are easy to care for plants. They prefer full shade and will tolerate some light sun. They thrive in average to fertile soil, and tolerate an alkaline to neutral soil pH. They prefer a moist well drained soil, but are drought resistant once mature, leaving one less task to do when temperatures are not always optimal for watering. As an evergreen, you will want to fertilize them at least once a year. Hellebores grow best in a soil that is rich in organic matter, so amending your native soil when first planting Hellebores, then adding a light top layer of well composted organic matter once or twice a season, in fall and maybe again in spring, should be all the fertilizer this hardy plant needs. Hellebores like to send their roots deep, so loosen soil six inches deeper than you will be planting it to give roots an easy path to travel.

Deadhead Hellebores when the flower fades, cutting the stem down to the foliage. This will encourage repeat blooming and keep flowers from producing seeds. Pruning of dead leaves and stems can be done to keep the plant neat and tidy. As this is a winter to spring blooming perennial, you will want to take care not to prune too much. Mulch your plant in late fall, then in late winter pull a little of that mulch away from the plant so that new growth can emerge.

Honeymoon® Tropical Sunset Lenten Rose Spacing

Space your plants about 18 to 24 inches apart to allow for good air circulation and room to grow. Hellebores will slowly fill your garden space with additional plants. Growing to about 24 inches tall and 24 inches wide, they will need to be divided in a couple years to relieve overcrowding. In late winter, early spring before flower buds appear, dig up the clump, wash the roots off and divide them, making sure to have at least two buds on the root crown. Replant with the crown of the roots just a little below ground level. As the first harbinger of spring, Honeymoon Tropical

Sunset Lenten Rose will quickly become your favorite sight in your early spring shade garden this year. Mix and match colors from the Honeymoon series of Hellebores for a spectacular display each spring.