Hellebores are an evergreen perennial in the Buttercup family. Ours was a housewarming present in Cobourg from my friend, Ruth. “Sweetpea” has a great many of these beauties in her garden, and I’d always admired them. One afternoon, Cam and I were sitting on our deck when one of the wild bunnies went scampering past with some vegetation in her mouth. Cam said, Look! She’s got her supper, and I said, Oh, no she doesn’t! That’s my Hellerbore. When I shouted at her she dropped it and, naturally, I replanted it, but adjacent to the deck this time. As you see, it flourished.
Fun Fact: Two of the most popular species of Hellebore are “Christmas Rose” and “Lenten Rose”. Whilst the Christmas Rose flowers during the holiday season, the Lenten Rose bides her time until later. She traditionally begins opening her nodding buds just as Lent begins and, typically, her flowers stay in full, glorious bloom throughout the entire forty days of Lent. Emblematic of new life in European folklore — seeing these resilient blossoms pushing up through the melting snow and thawing mud made them a powerful symbol of spiritual rebirth, hope, and the joy of Easter.
The Great Hellebore Heist
Beside our deck, in shadows green,
A lovely Lenten Rose was seen—
A housewarming from gentle Ruth,
It flourished in folkloric truth.
Until a bunny, wild and bold,
Deemed it a salad made of gold,
She snatched it up and scampered past—
A stolen supper, moving fast!
“Oh look, she’s got her evening treat!”
Said Cam, while watching from his seat.
But suddenly I saw the leaf,
And shouted at the furry thief:
Oh no she doesn’t! “Drop that green!
That is the finest flower seen!”
I saved our plant, I changed the plot,
And moved it to a safer spot.
Now tucked away, it safely grows,
Far from the reach of twitching toes.
The bunny sticks to grass and weeds,
While our sweet Helleborus succeeds!
’Til next time, y’all…
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