Northern Shade Gardening

Helleborus 'Ivory Prince' May 16 beautiful blooms

The Helleborus ‘Ivory Prince’ (Lenten rose) are in bloom now, and their blossoms are as pretty as their foliage. The flowers are subtle shades of cream, muted pink and green. All six plants made it through a zone 3 winter, and a cold spring. I’ve been very impressed with this perennial’s hardiness and perseverance through repeated frosts. These attractive shade plants are great in the spring garden. Their name is Helleborus ‘Walhelivor’, but they are usually found under the marketing name of  ‘Ivory Prince’.  Either way, they are a very desirable plant.

Helleborus 'Ivory Prince' Dec 21 under snow

Here is what a Helleborus leaf looked like back in December under the snow. It resembles a sea star, floating atop a frozen ocean. The stiff leaves hold the snow without crumpling.

Helleborus 'Ivory Prince' April 17 red stems

The Helleborus ‘Ivory Prince’ were remarkably preserved in April, retaining the leaves from last year, to give a wonderful burst of early green. This photo shows the red stems on April 17, with a few new leaves and buds emerging from the centre of the plant.

Helleborus 'Ivory Prince' April 18 with foliage from last year still

This picture shows what great shape the Ivory Prince leaves were in after winter. I think the fallen leaf cover and snow helped to protect the perennial, because I’ve heard that Hellebores don’t normally do well on the prairies, or in zone 3, but these have done exceedingly well so far. Perhaps the shelter of a garden, with fences and houses around, and trees overhead help protect them from the drying winds, or perhaps Ivory Prince is better adapted for this climate.

Helleborus 'Ivory Prince' April 23 under leaves and snow

We had a cold snap at the end of April, and the temperatures went down to -15 C (5 F) with the windchill. I had already removed the winter leaf layer, and the new Helleborus sprouts were exposed overnight. My timing was not good though, since I put some leaf cover back over the hellebore plants after the coldest night. Here they are protected by leaves, with snow over top. I wouldn’t bother covering them back up in spring again, as they seem to have done just fine anyways. I should have left the winter leaves over half of them, and uncovered the rest, to see if there would be any difference in their growth.

Helleborus 'Ivory Prince' May 2 red stems

Here are the pretty new Helleborus buds at the beginning of May. I love the dark red stems, contrasting with the green foliage. The buds look wonderful, with their burgundy pink outside sepals, and creamy pink tips.

Helleborus 'Ivory Prince' May 16 flower closeup

The lovely cream coloured blooms, with hints of green, are revealed as the sepals open on the Ivory Prince. The colour variations are delicious, and add to the charm of the flowers. Most of the flowers face outwards or even up, so they are easy to see.

Helleborus 'Ivory Prince' May 16 plant group

This is part of a group of six Hellebore plants. I’m pleased with how these perennials are filling in, as they just start the season. You can just see some Galanthus  elwesii (snowdrops) behind the group. They have been blooming for about  as long as the Helleborus. The other surrounding perennials have not developed yet.

Helleborus 'Ivory Prince' May 16 lots of beautiful blooms

Above you can see a  Helleborus covered in beautiful blooms. They are very striking, and besides the Puschkinia (striped squills), they are the most noticeable flowers in the garden right now. My other early perennials, Brunnera (Siberian bugloss) and Pulmonaria (lungwort), are just beginning to open their first blue flowers. I would recommend Helleborus ‘Ivory Prince’ for a protected garden in zone 3, as they really extend the flower season, blooming before most early perennials. In a cold, late spring like this one, this is especially appreciated. The plant below is shown blooming on May 18, after a day of snow.

Here is another post about Ivory Prince hellebore.

Helleborus ‘walhelivor’ (Ivory Prince Lenten rose) blooming after the snow

Puschkinia scilloides var libanotica (striped squills) in bloom

Puschkinia scilloides libanotica (striped squills) are one of the earliest bulbs to appear in the spring, and make a lovely show with their pretty blooms. There are masses of florets facing outwards from the stem. I’ve been very impressed with how well these showy bulbs have flourished in the shade and handled the cold.

I have one group of striped squills close to the north side of my house, partly under  a bay window, squeezed between some small yews, and large spruce and pine. These evergreens create year round shade for the Puschkinia, unlike the bulbs in the backyard under deciduous trees. The little blue bulbs might get a half hour of  sun at the most, but are still growing and blooming well. I’m very impressed by how these spring bulbs have performed with such a low light exposure, and that the blooms have not shrunk after three years. In the shadows, the pale blue colour is very conspicuous. Their lovely flowers show up well against the dark green of the yew.

The Puschkinia bulbs have coped with the flurries we’ve had over the past week just fine. They continue to shine, blooming through the below freezing temperatures, and shrugging off the white flakes. The striped squills are handling the May weather better than me. The flowers might look delicate, but they are definitely not wimps. Planting some early, hardy bulbs greatly lengthens the number of weeks that the garden is in bloom, when the growing season is so short.

Puschkinia scilloides var libanotica (striped squills) closeup

Here is a closeup of one flower stalk, showing the six petals of each floret. Each petal is white, with a blue stripe down the middle, visible on the front and back of the petals. This gives an overall light blue colour when seen from a distance. Since they face outwards all around the stem, they look good when viewed from any direction, even from above. In my garden, the Puschkinia bulbs are about 25 cm (10 in) tall, and the blooms about 10 cm (4 in) high. The flowers last for about three weeks.

Puschkinia scilloides var libanotica (striped squills) buds closeup

This closeup of the buds shows the tightly folded petals with blue stripes. You can see how they are positioned in all directions around the central stalk.

I’ve seen these sold as Puschkinia libanotica too. I also grow some Puschkinia scilloides ‘Alba’, which are the white version. If you look very closely at the Alba blooms though, you can see a very faint blue line in the centre of each petal. They are lovely in their own way, but the regular blue striped bulbs are more endearing. This post from last year shows photos of both types of Puschkinia growing in my garden.

Puschkinia scilloides var libanotica (striped squills) group

Here is part of the Puschkinia group in front of a yew. You can see how the pine tree helps mulch this garden bed, by dropping needles on top of the soil. I sometimes scuff my shoe across the sidewalk as I walk by, pushing more fallen pine needles into the bed. They make a great natural and free mulch.

I love the little spring bulbs, which bloom one after another in my garden. The Puschkinia (striped squills) bloom a little after the Galanthus (snowdrop) bulbs start to flower. They bloom just before the Chionodoxa (glory of the snow) and Scilla (squills), to which they are related. Then come the Muscari (grape hyacinths) and Crocus. The parade of little bulbs starts early in the garden, extending the bloom cycle. Here is a post showing the pretty blue Chionodoxa and Scilla bulbs flowering last year.

Puschkinia scilloides var libanotica really make a splash in the early spring garden. They are very hardy in a zone 3 garden, and they don’t mind the shade. The bulb’s early blooming time is a real benefit to a short growing season. These easy going spring bulbs are one of my favourites.

Here are four pretty  shade perennials I recently bought to plant under the trees. Trillium grandiflorum (great white trillium), Sanguinaria canadensis (bloodroot) and Arisaema sikokianum (Japanese jack in the pulpit) are woodland perennials that emerge to bloom in the spring. The Trillium and Sanguinaria have white flowers, while the Arisaema has a white interior on the hooded spathe and a conspicuous white spadix in the middle. The Arisaema is going to be borderline hardy, but is so captivating, that I had to give it a try. The new Onoclea sensibilis (sensitive fern) has nicely shaped fronds. These plants are still in their pots as they pose for their photo shoot, before being planted in the garden.

Arisaema sikokianum (Japanese jack in the pulpit)

The Arisaema sikokianum (Japanese jack in the pulpit) is a striking plant that grabs your attention with its unusual flower shape and colour contrast. There is a long dark coloured spathe (hood) that rises up from behind, with distinct stripes on the interior. The inside of the cup is a pure white. Within the cup is the equally white spadix. The unique form is eye-catching, along with the bright white contrast. The light colour shows up well in the dark of the shade. There are two leaves, one with 3 lobes, and one with 5. This woodland plant will be planted under the trees, where it should be right at home. I only purchased one plant, because I’m not sure if it will be entirely hardy. It is rated for zone 5, and the garden is in zone 3, but I’ve had fairly good success with other perennials that were borderline. I’ll make sure that the jack in the pulpit is covered with leaves in the fall, and the snow cover should help too. Since they are not very common yet, it’s possible that this particular type of jack in the pulpit just haven’t been tried much in zone 3. I’ll let you know next spring if this perennial survives an Alberta winter.

Sanguinaria canadensis (bloodroot)

Sanguinaria canadensis (bloodroot) has distinctive, deeply lobed and rounded leaves. Although I haven’t broken a stem yet, they are supposed to have a red sap. This is the origin of both their common name and Latin name. It’s been a while since I took Latin, but for a dead language, it comes in handy once in a while. I haven’t decided whether to plant these perennials in the garden next to some lacy ferns, or beside some Pulmonaria (lungwort) that have long leaves. Being a woodland plant, they should enjoy the same shade as these perennials. You can see these on bloom in this followup post on Sanguinaria canadensis and their flowers..

Onoclea sensibilis (sensitive fern)

I’ve  picked up  a new fern, Onoclea sensibilis (sensitive fern). Although it’s still in its pot, it looks good in the dappled light under the tree. These ferns like it moist, so I’ll add lots of organic matter to the soil. They are found throughout eastern North America, and now in an Edmonton garden too. Sensitive ferns are hardy to zone 2, so they won’t need any coddling. This fern won’t be for fall interest, since the fronds quickly die back when the frosts come. The fertile fronds are supposed to persist, much like ostrich ferns.

Trillium grandiflorum (great white trillium)

Aren’t the three petalled  Trillium grandiflorum flowers pretty? I remember these plants from the woods of Ontario. They are perfect for a shady garden.

I’ve decided to plant some real Trilliums this year. A year ago I bought some ill fated trillium rhizomes in a plastic package from the store. I knew they were not a good idea, even as I was buying them, but they were so inexpensive (another bad sign), that I thought I’d give them a try, with nothing much lost. Well, I carefully prepared the soil and planted the rhizomes underneath the maple tree, where they’d be sure to get lots of leaf litter in the shade. I watered them, and waited, but  no hint of green appeared. Since trilliums often die back for the summer, I thought perhaps they might appear later. All summer I tended the area, and even when I brought home new plants, I reserved the spot for my phantom trilliums. In the fall, when I needed space for some new perennials, I refrained from planting anything too close to the spot with the nonexistent trilliums. Well now, a year later, nothing has emerged from underground, so I’ve given up the fantasy that there were ever any real trilliums there, and I’ll plant these new beauties. Their lovely white petals, and nicely shaped leaves, in groups of 3, will look much better than a carefully tended bare area.

I look forward to seeing if these new woodland perennials spread next year. I’d love to have a little colony of trilliums. Even though they are in a suburban garden, I hope the new woodland plants appreciate the shade of  the trees, surrounded by fallen leaves.

Here is a follow up post about how the woodland flowers are growing.