Veratrum album 'Lorna's Green'

RHS Plant Profile
white false hellebore 'Lorna's Green'

Save a plant

Where do you want to save Veratrum album 'Lorna's Green'?

Plants I own
Wishlist
Go to My Plants
Award of Garden Merit
Herbaceous Perennial
Buy this from Plant Nurseries
1 Suppliers

A rhixomatous perennial with broadly ovate, pleated basal leaves with lightly hairy undersides. Produces upright flower stems to 2.5m high in early to midsummer, with pendent branches densely covered with small, pale green flowers

Position

Full sun, Partial shade

Soil Types

Chalk, Clay, Loam, Sand

Max Height

1.5-2.5 metres

Max Spread

0.5-1 metres

Size

Time to Maturity
2–5 years
Max Spread
0.5-1 metres
Max Height
1.5-2.5 metres

Growing Conditions

Chalk Clay Loam Sand
Moisture
Moist but well–drained
pH
Acid or Alkaline or Neutral

Position

Full sun Partial shade
Aspect
East–facing or South–facing or West–facing
Exposure
Sheltered
Hardiness

Hardiness Ratings

All ratings refer to the UK growing conditions unless otherwise stated. Minimum temperature ranges (in degrees C) are shown in brackets

  • H1A: under glass all year (>15C)
  • H1B: can be grown outside in the summer (10 - 15)
  • H1C: can be grown outside in the summer (5 - 10)
  • H2: tolerant of low temperatures, but not surviving being frozen (1 to 5)
  • H3: hardy in coastal and relatively mild parts of the UK (-5 to 1)
  • H4: hardy through most of the UK (-10 to -5)
  • H5: hardy in most places throughout the UK even in severe winters (-15 to -10)
  • H6: hardy in all of UK and northern Europe (-20 to -15)
  • H7: hardy in the severest European continental climates (< -20)
H7

Colour & Scent

Season Stem Flower Foliage Fruit
Spring
Summer
Autumn
Winter

Botanical Details

Family
Melanthiaceae
Native to GB/Ireland
No
Foliage
Deciduous
Habit
Columnar upright
Potentially harmful
TOXIC if eaten. Wear gloves and other protective equipment when handling TOXIC to pets if eaten (dogs) - see the HTA guide to potentially harmful plants for further information and useful contact numbers
Genus
Veratrum are herbaceous, rhizomatous perennials with erect stems bearing alternate, pleated ovate or elliptic leaves and dense, branched panicles of small, star-shaped flowers in summer
Name Status
Accepted

How to Grow

Cultivation

Grow in deep, humus-rich soil. Prefers partial shade but will tolerate full sun in a site that does not dry out. Shelter from cold, drying winds

Propagation

Propagate by seed, sown as soon as it is ripe in a cold frame, or for quicker results by division in autumn (propagation by seed is unreliable and slow)

Suggested planting locations and garden types

  • Architectural
  • Cottage and informal garden
  • Flower borders and beds

Pruning

Flower spikes can be cut down after flowering, or left to develop seed heads for winter interest

Pests

May be susceptible to slugs and snails

Diseases

Generally disease-free