Lenten Rose

If you enjoy spring, and look with eager anticipation at your garden, waiting for the first blooms, then the Lenten Rose is the plant for you. The first blooms can often push through the last of the winter snow, they are so eager to appear. Flowering in March and April, this is a larger plant, and easier to grow, than the earlier-blooming Christmas Rose. The flowers are abundant, and carried on stems at least 18 inches tall, that rise above a carpet of leathery, dark-green leaves. These are evergreen, but in colder areas they may be damaged in winter, and become unsightly. No problem, because fresh new ones begin to grow even before flowering is completely over. The blooms are incredibly long-lasting, for 8 to 10 weeks, turning from white to a beautiful light chartreuse green as they mature. Plants can be variable, and yours might have light pink or soft rosy-purple flowers – but they are always beautiful. For shady areas beneath trees this plant is unbeatable, or grow it near a doorway, to enjoy as you come and go.

• White or pink flowers maturing to chartreuse-green
• Flowers in March or April
• Attractive mound of leathery green leaves
• Excellent ground cover for shade and woodlands
• Classic flower for a cottage-style garden

The Lenten Rose is easy to grow and a durable, long-lived plant. Grow it in partial shade, with some morning sun, or in light full shade. Areas beneath trees or in the shade of a wall are ideal. Plant in moist but well-drained soil enriched with compost or rotted leaves. It will grow in most soils, except for very dry and very wet ones, and enjoys alkaline soil conditions. Add some lime to the soil when planting if your soil is neutral or acidic. Deer and rabbits won’t eat it, and pests or diseases are rare. Remove the flowering stems once the blooms have faded, and at the same time cut off old or damaged leaves to make way for new ones. No other care is needed.