When and How to Prune Hellebore Plants
If you have hellebores in the yard, you may wonder if you need to prune them. All hellebore plants benefit from pruning, though when and how to do it depends on the species. Seasoned grower Jerad Bryant shares all you need to know about pruning your hellebores for growing success.
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It’s essential to prune your hellebore plants for a lovely display early in the growing season. These are among of the first species to emerge in late winter and early spring while others are dormant underground. They add color, structure, and charm to gardens in cold climates.
You’ll notice hellebore shoots popping up around the same time camellias bloom. They love cold temperatures, ample moisture, and shade. Easy to grow and care for, they’re perfect additions to garden beds, borders, and shady walkways.
As the new shoots pop up, you may also notice last year’s leaves persisting around the plant. Though it’s not technically essential, it’s important to cut off these old leaves to keep your specimens happy, healthy, and productive. Grab your pruners and gloves, and let’s learn to prune your hellebore plants!
Is Pruning Necessary?
Pruning isn’t 100% necessary, though it has two benefits. Firstly, it prevents overwintering pests and diseases from infecting new growth. Hellebore leaf spot is a common condition that manifests as black or brown spots on old foliage. The spots can rapidly spread to new shoots, and it’s important to snip off the old leaves before they spread the condition.
Secondly, pruning creates a lovely floral display in the garden. Old leaves are tattered, dark green, and spotty, while new ones are bright green, whole, and healthy. If you leave the old ones, they’ll detract from the new blooms and foliage that emerge in late winter and spring.
Making cuts isn’t absolutely necessary, though I strongly recommend doing it to ensure your plants thrive for the rest of the season. One to two pruning sessions a year is enough to prevent diseases and promote beautiful displays.
When to Prune Hellebores
Now that we know why we’re making cuts, let’s determine the best time to prune. When to cut depends on the species you’re growing. There are evergreen, deciduous, and hybrid hellebores. Hybrid and deciduous species grow similarly, while evergreen types require different care.
Hybrids and Deciduous Species
These are the most common hellebore plants you’ll find. They’re available online, at nurseries, and big box garden centers. They have hand-like leaves and nodding, bell-shaped flower buds that open as they emerge. These species bloom on new growth that appears as days lengthen and warm.
Both deciduous and hybrid hellebores hold onto their old leaves throughout the winter, though you don’t have to leave them on the plants. Remove the old leaves as new shoots emerge in late winter and early spring. This prevents overwintering pests from moving to new growth.
You may also prune these types again in late spring after they finish flowering. This promotes leafy growth and prevents unruly seedlings from sprouting. Because hellebores are cross-pollinating, seedlings that sprout will differ from the mother plants. Cutting the spent blooms prevents seeds from growing and falling into the soil.
Evergreen Species
Evergreen hellebores require pruning at a different time of year than hybrid and deciduous varieties. They form flowers on old growth from the previous year. If you snip their stems in late winter, you’ll cut off the blooms!
Wait until they show new growth in spring before deciding which cuts to make. Evergreen types benefit from pruning once a year after they finish flowering. You’ll remove old stems and leave the young ones to grow in their place during late spring or summer.
Evergreen species are less common than the hybrids and deciduous species. Though uncommon, you may have a rare type instead of the popular ones. Consult this list of evergreen hellebores to determine if you do:
- Stinking Hellebore, Helleborus foetidus
- Corsican Hellebore, Helleborus lividus subsp. corsicus
- Stern’s Hybrid Hellebore, Helleborus x sternii
How to Prune Hellebores
How you prune depends on your hellebore types. Make the right cuts and your specimens will thrive the rest of the year. It’s a simple process, and the more often you do it the easier it will become. Use pruners or snips for deciduous types and hybrids and pruners for evergreen ones. The evergreens have semi-woody stems that need thick, sharp blades to cut.
Hybrids and Deciduous Species
Prune these two types by locating their ring of old stems and leaves. As the new shoots push themselves out of the ground, the old, tattered shoots will fall in a ring around them. With your snips or pruners, cut the old leaves off as close to the soil as possible. Make clean, even cuts, and avoid squeezing or smushing the stems.
You may leave the tattered leaves to decay in place, though this encourages pests and diseases to spread onto fresh shoots. It’s better to hot compost or bury the scraps a foot deep underground; these methods keep the nutrients cycling in your garden while preventing the spread of pests and pathogens.
After the blooms fade in late spring, they form seed pods in their centers. You may leave the flowers and let them drop seeds below, or you can remove them and bring them indoors in bouquets and floral arrangements. Snipping the spent blooms encourages new, leafy growth.
Evergreen Species
Evergreen hellebores need the care of a different sort. Rather than cutting them as they bloom, you’ll want to wait for them to finish flowering. When the blooms begin forming seed pods you can consider pruning your plants.
Though you can cut evergreen types, it’s often unnecessary. The spent stems will decay in place after the seeds fall out of the spent flowers. If you’d prefer not to have dead and living growth on the plants at the same time, you can snip the flowering stems as they finish blooming in early summer.
There are three benefits to pruning evergreen types: you remove old growth, you prevent seedlings from growing, and you create ready stems for bouquets! Hellebore flowers last long after you cut them if they have seed pods forming.
Frequently Asked Questions
When do you prune hellebore plants?
Prune deciduous or hybrid species in late winter and early spring as new flowers grow. Remove last year’s growth to make room for new blooms. Prune evergreen varieties after they finish flowering in late spring or early summer.
How do you prune stinking hellebores?
The stinking hellebore is an evergreen type that forms blooms and leaves on last year’s stems. Remove flowering stems once they finish blooming in summer, and leave the new short stems to take their place.
How is best to prune hellebore plants?
The best pruning styles depend on the type of hellebore you have. Cut last year’s growth off hybrid or deciduous types as their new flowers grow. Cut flowering stems after they finish blooming off evergreen species in summer.
