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Re: sproutin

Didier,

Hellebore seed is very easy to germinate if it is collected fresh, and 
either planted immediately, or stored in slightly moist vermiculite or 
peatmoss at refrigerator temperatures.  Dry-stored hellebore seed is 
generally recalcitrant, though it may germinate one or more years after 
planting.

If you have hellebores growing in your garden, you are very likely to 
have self-sown seedlings near the mother plant.  The cotyledons typically 
emerge in March in the Pacific Northwest, just a few weeks after the 
mother plants open their flowers.

These seedlings are easy to dig up and grow on in pots, generally to be 
planted in the autumn.

If you do have dry-stored seed, it is worth trying to start it by holding 
at intermediate temperatures [ca. 10 C], planted quite deeply [ca. 1 cm, 
or kept in the dark.  After about 3-4 weeks at this temperture, you can 
try exposing to higher temperatures, 20-25 C for a week or two.

Helleborus foetidus and related species [the ones with leafy stems] are 
most likely to germinate from dried seed.  The stemless species 
[orientalis, niger] are less likely to germinate under the stated conditions.


Loren Russell, Corvallis, Oregon
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