A Wonderful New Hellebore, ‘Penny’s Pink’
‘Penny’s Pink’ hybrid hellebore
I rarely profile a single plant, but I am so excited about ‘Penny’s Pink’ hybrid hellebore that I decided it deserved a post of its own. And where do I start, the new leaves, the old leaves, the new flowers, the old flowers….they all have amazing ornamental value. Read on to find out about what has been called “the most exciting new hellebore in years.” All photos were taken of actual plants at Carolyn’s Shade Gardens.
Nursery News: Carolyn’s Shade Gardens is a retail nursery located in Bryn Mawr, PA, specializing in showy, colorful, and unusual plants for shade. The only plants that we ship are snowdrops and miniature hostas. For catalogues and announcements of events, please send your full name, location, and phone number (for back up use only) to carolyn@carolynsshadegardens.com. Click here to get to the home page of our website for catalogues and information about our nursery and to subscribe to our blog.
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The 3″ symmetrical, cup-shaped flowers are a lovely rosy pink with a prominent cluster of yellow stamens set off by chartreuse nectaries.
‘Penny’s Pink’ was hybridized by RD Plants in the UK and is named after famous British plantswoman Penelope Hobhouse. It is probably a cross between hybrid hellebore and Helleborus x ballardiae, which is itself a cross between Christmas rose and Helleborus lividus. The latter species gives ‘Penny’s Pink’ its burgundy overtones, marbled leaves, and distinctive pink flowers.
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Burgundy stems are topped by a fading flower on the right and a flower well past its prime on the left, both are beautiful. Because the flowers are sterile, they last a long time.
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The backs of the flowers are as pretty as the front and deepen to a dark pink with age.
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The new leaves of ‘Penny’s Pink’ come out looking like pink fishnet stockings as one reviewer described them.
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The colors stop people in their tracks in my sales area.
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By June, the pink marbling has turned to lime-green, and the leaves are shiny, thick, and leathery. You can see that the spent flowers still provide interest.
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I didn’t stock this hellebore until late May last year. Based on the leaves alone, the plants were gone within a day and never made it to the open house sale. No one visited without buying one.
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And here’s something amazing—this is one of last year’s leaves in my garden today. After our horrendous winter, they still look beautiful, not something I can say about most plants or humans either. I don’t need to tell you what my other hellebore leaves look like!
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Another “old” leaf photo of the whole plant from the top.
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Five flower stalks loaded with buds recently emerged. This plant, which I put in my garden last June, was the smallest of the 100 plants I sold.
‘Penny’s Pink’ is 14 to 18 inches tall and 20 to 23 inches wide. It blooms at the same time as most other hellebores but for a longer period and grows in the same conditions: well-drained soil in a mostly shady to mostly sunny location. Available now at Carolyn’s Shade Gardens.
Carolyn
Nursery Happenings: Our first event is the Hellebore Extravaganza on Saturday, April 11, from 10 am to 3 pm. However, you can stop by anytime by appointment to purchase hellebores.
Carolyn’s Shade Gardens is a local retail nursery in Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania, U.S., zone 6b/7a. The only plants that we mail order are snowdrops and miniature hostas and only within the US.
If you are within visiting distance and would like to receive catalogues and information about customer events, please send your full name and phone number to carolynsshadegardens@verizon.net. Subscribing to my blog does not sign you up to receive this information.
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CAROLYN'S SHADE GARDENS 
March 30, 2015 at 7:36 pm
Carolyn this is one of the most beautiful hellebores I have seen from foliage to flower, beginning to end.
March 30, 2015 at 7:48 pm
Donna, I think so. It is a show stopper. Carolyn
March 30, 2015 at 7:41 pm
Any suggestions where to get something like this in Dallas, Texas? I can only find the rather boring lime white variety around here. But they survive our blazing summers and crazy winters.
March 30, 2015 at 7:47 pm
Colleen, Not sure about growing it in Dallas, but you could Google a mail order source. Carolyn
March 30, 2015 at 8:02 pm
How nice that your snowdrops are blooming at the same time. Ours are gone at least 2 weeks but Hellebores are still in bloom. Penny’s Pink, flower and foliage, are absolutely stunning. Thank you for all your gorgeous photos!
March 30, 2015 at 8:45 pm
Sieglinde, Glad you like the photos. Everything is very late this year because it has been so cold. Snowdrops are mid-season now, but warm weather later this week will probably accelerate them. Carolyn
March 30, 2015 at 8:45 pm
That is one absolutely stunning plant (and photo)! 🙂
March 30, 2015 at 9:16 pm
CL, You are right, although for me the leaves far outshine the flowers and I think I like the mature leaves slightly better. Carolyn
March 30, 2015 at 8:52 pm
Please keep me on your list for events and garden updates. I also want to make an appointment to buy some new Penny’s Pink Hellebores. All the best, Diane Actman
March 31, 2015 at 5:35 am
Diane, Let me know by email when you would like to stop by. Carolyn
March 31, 2015 at 12:35 am
Amazing foliage! Truly worthy of its own post! 🙂
March 31, 2015 at 5:40 am
Anna, The leaves are worth it alone. Carolyn
March 31, 2015 at 8:02 am
Truly lovely. I’m in zone 5. Don’t know your zone. Will this perform in the same way in my garden?
April 1, 2015 at 9:29 pm
Gayle, I am zone 6b/7a. Not sure how Penny’s Pink will do in zone 5 as I don’t garden there. Carolyn
March 31, 2015 at 1:26 pm
I just added one of these to my garden this spring. They are just as beautiful as in the pictures.
April 1, 2015 at 9:32 pm
Arthur, Glad you agree. Lots of times photos of plants are enhanced with extra flowers, etc., but I never do that. Carolyn
March 31, 2015 at 4:43 pm
I really do like the pink hellebore, it has clean, clear color. The leaves look like they hold up very well too. Winter was tough on them here as well. But I have to ask… over time does it hold that pick color as strongly? I bought some pinks and over time they end up looking somewhat dusty-pink, that is not very appealing.
April 1, 2015 at 9:37 pm
Donna, The pink color in the leaves fades to lime green. The flowers will stay the same color. Carolyn
April 6, 2015 at 10:37 am
Thank you. The flower color is what I wanted to keep.
March 31, 2015 at 9:01 pm
I was drooling over this plant in the Plant Delights catalog, so it’s nice to have your testimonial.
April 1, 2015 at 9:40 pm
Jean, It was introduced in the UK in 2012 and came here last year so there isn’t a huge track record. I am very impressed with mine so far. Anything that could look good after our winter with no snow protection is amazing. Carolyn
March 31, 2015 at 9:18 pm
Carolyn, I am with you. I bought one back in January and put it at the feet of a Pieris japonica Dorthy Wyckoff which turns burgundy in the winter. Stunning! I went and bought two more. My gardening buddy ended up doing the same thing. All the best, Mary Griggs
April 1, 2015 at 9:42 pm
Mary, It is nice to have other gardeners agree with my assessment. Carolyn
April 2, 2015 at 12:59 pm
I fell in love from afar with this plant after seeing them on Pine Knot Farm’s Facebook page. I haven’t planted much that is pink in my garden, but I am going to have to find a home for this one.
April 2, 2015 at 4:28 pm
Les, You can always cut off the flowers. The leaves are my favorite part. Carolyn
April 2, 2015 at 5:51 pm
Carolyn
Can you save me a Penny’s Pink Hellebore?
Sallyann Gansky
April 4, 2015 at 6:56 am
Sally Ann, Please send me an email so we can figure out an order for you. The blog is not the place to order plants. Thanks, Carolyn
April 3, 2015 at 12:50 pm
What a little beauty and those leaves add to the interest. Recently I was asked by someone who knew how crazy I was about gardening if I could name a plant, she went on to describe Hellebore, what really tickled me was when she said, its sort of known, as a posh plant!
April 4, 2015 at 7:00 am
Alistair, Yes, gardeners do still consider hellebores a high end, specialty plant and they are still expensive relative to other plants. What work horses though. Carolyn
April 3, 2015 at 11:49 pm
Wow. I would have to plant this one well away from my other hellebores, it would outshine all of them! The foliage really is something. I’m putting it way up on the wish-list.
April 4, 2015 at 7:02 am
Frank, Penny’s Pink does have all the attributes of a very desirable plant. However, I do have many other hellebores that rival it. the leaves are what really put it over the top. Carolyn
April 6, 2015 at 10:15 am
WoW…just gorgeous.
April 6, 2015 at 7:37 pm
This is extraordinary. The flowers are lovely, of course, but the foliage has sold me! I hope i can find this locally!
April 6, 2015 at 7:44 pm
Deb, Yes, it’s all about the leaves for me too. Carolyn