Click Here To Visit The SRGC Main Site
Helleborus multifidus is the first one here, though it also grows in a bed from which the snow melts first. All other of my Hellebores are still under snow.When snow melted a few days ago, it's buds were ready above the ground. I find it interesting that it's buds all face south. How can it know which way south is when there is a lot of snow above it? I have noticed the same behavior also in previous years. Ground is still frozen solid under the leaf carpet, yet it is ready to start to flower as soon as the temperatures will raise more .
But a secondary flowering I have never seen. I thought the plants looked unusually full. Is this something common?
How can it know which way south is when there is a lot of snow above it?
Leena, nice plants! Seem they like your cold snowy winter more than mine mild wet one!
The flowers on the niger plant are very upward facing and of good construction. Niger Jacob?
A surprising amount of light gets through the snow. I remember a few decades back, when we had reliable zone 3&4 weather with reliable snow, lots of people owned snowmobiles. Some of the lakes were so heavily used that 80% of the surfaces were packed down by the snowmobiles. There was concern that the packed snow wouldn't allow enough light to penetrate to the lake underneath to support the ecosystem that apparently depends on the light. Our Minnesota state Department of Natural Resources conducted a study to determine the effects. But there was never any change in snowmobile use legislation, so I assume results of the study were either inconclusive or negligible.
They have very nice and upward facing flowers, also flowers are quite big. These were sold with no name, and I don't think they are 'Jacob'. I have 'Jacob', and it always starts to flower in December, and then many times winter destroys it's flowers. This last autumn we got snow already in early December, and 'Jacob' wasn't very advanced then, but still it doesn't flower well now.Here it is today.