Oregon nursery adds hellebores to their lineup

Little Prince of Oregon Nursery has welcomed Winter Jewels® Hellebores to their lineup, carrying on the legacy of Ernie and Marietta O'Byrne. The O'Byrnes have been carefully growing, selecting, and improving this line of seed-grown Hellebore hybrids for over 30 years through Northwest Garden Nursery.

"Little Prince of Oregon Nursery is honored that Ernie and Marietta deem us worthy to carry on the legacy of the Winter Jewels® Hellebores," says Mark Leichty, Director of Business Development at Little Prince of Oregon. "We recognize that their diligent and patient work over many decades has created the most beautiful and desirable Hellebore hybrids found anywhere in horticulture. We plan to enlarge the program through careful selection and evaluation, providing even more improved varieties for Hellebore enthusiasts."

A Polished Presentation
"We are so excited because we are convinced that they will continue, and even improve, the quality that we have worked so hard to achieve in over 30 years of working with Helleborus × hybridus," said Ernie and Marietta O'Byrne. "They are the first nursery that we have worked with that truly understands the dedication to meticulous detail that it took and will take going forward to preserve and improve the legacy breeding program that we have developed."

Winter Jewels Hellebores are seed-grown with exacting standards to ensure steady improvement in features, including:

• Upright stems with gently nodding flowers (to ensure a long-lasting, colorful display and protect the integrity of the breeding line)
• Interesting coloration on the backs of tepals for enjoyment from all angles
• Double flowers with evenly spaced tepals that look beautiful from above
• Fine foliage that complements, rather than overwhelms the flowers
• Deep, saturated, and even color in flowers

Landscape Craftsman Jerry Fritz reaches for Winter Jewels when it's time to adorn his designs from Philadelphia to the Hamptons and everywhere in between. "I have been using Hellebores in my gardens that I have designed for over 35 years. The Winter Jewels strain is hands down the best variety in the marketplace. Their colors are unmatched to any others that I have seen. They also are the most vigorous and longest blooming Hellebores that I have used."