I nearly missed these beauties during last week’s visit to Harlow Carr. The first is a very neat hybrid with an even coverage of dark purple spots against a lighter background.
The second is a very floriferous cultivar: Helleborus ‘Anna’s Red’. The flowers seemed to have a metallic character in the early evening light.
My final choice for today is sheeny, slate coloured hellebore with dark purple spots – about as close to a black hellebore as I’ve seen this year. A tinge of blue was especially evident on the reverses of the flowers (you can just about make out this patch of plants in the top left of the first image). The foliage was dark green, but the leaves around the flowers were purple. This plant knows how to dress for effect.
I’d expecting that the hellebores would be past their best – how wrong was I?
Susan Rushton 
I am completely smitten by that last one; those flowers with those leaves! Garden drama at its best. You are so right about dressing for effect!
The purple leaves are a lovely touch.
The black is gorgeous. I’ll definitely be on the lookout for one of those!
There’s something mildly shocking about a black flower, but in a good way.
Love that last slate black one. Do you know what it is?
It’s not a named cultivar, but one of Ashwood’s Garden Hybrids – the same applies to the first one.
That first shot is fabulous. Beautiful.
Thanks Jacqueline – I like that one best too.
Goodness, those flowers stunning!
I’m glad you like them.
They are the pick of the bunch.
I love the variety in hellebores – each one seeming to be just a little different.
Those flowers are so unique! I’m glad your hand was in the photo. Otherwise I wouldn’t have known the flowers were so big. I’m surprised at the size, actually. Gorgeous!
They do vary, but these were fine specimens.
Gorgeous!
I love hellebores, your photography of them is spectacular, and the picture at the op of the page for hellebores, stunning, as I have never seen such an array of varieties of bloom.
May I ask what macro lens you use for your photography? As of now I am painstakingly saving for a Canon 100mm/f2.8 L lens, this is my goal for this year.
I mainly use an iPhone. The macro shots do take a little extra patience but it is very light and I always have it with me. I used to use a Canon G12, but the colour accuracy was much better on my iPhone. I’ve often been tempted by the Canon macro lens too – I’m sure it is a wonderful piece of equipment.