Is Hellebore deer resistant?
Helleborus orientalis
Toxic to cats and dogs if eaten
About Hellebore
Toxic in every part, leathery in texture, and consequently ignored by deer, rabbits and voles. It also flowers in February, which almost nothing else does. The flowers hang downward and face the ground, so plant it raised if you can, on a bank or beside a path where you look at it from the side rather than from above. Newer strains have been bred to hold the flowers outward. The one bit of maintenance worth doing is cutting last year's leaves off at the base in late winter, just as the buds push. The old foliage is usually blackened and tatty by then, it hides the flowers, and it carries the leaf spot that would otherwise infect the new growth. Wear gloves, because the sap irritates skin.
Soil and care
- Soil pH
- 6.5 to 7.5
- Drainage
- Well drained
- Water
- Moderate
- Fertility
- Moderate
- Spacing
- 18 to 24 in apart
- Growth rate
- Slow
- Maintenance
- Low
Tolerances and uses
- Drought
- Moderate
- Salt
- Low
- Pollinators
- Moderate
- Evergreen
- Containers
What to plant it with
- Japanese Forest Grass
Fine texture against leathery. Solves the shade border without a single hosta.
- Boxwood
Evergreen structure with something flowering at its feet in February.
- Christmas Fern
The core of a deer-proof shade planting. Both evergreen, both ignored, both happy in dry shade once established.
Similar to Hellebore
Other perennials with the same deer rating.
- Anise HyssopAgastache sp.Zones 4–9, genus rangeRarely damaged
- Basket of GoldAurinia saxatilisZones 3–7Rarely damaged
- Bearded IrisIris germanicaZones 3–9Rarely damaged
- Bigleaf GoldenrayLigularia dentataZones 4–8Rarely damaged
- Bleeding HeartLamprocapnos spectabilisZones 3–9Rarely damaged
- Butter and EggsLinaria vulgarisZones 3–9Rarely damaged
Where Hellebore grows
Hardy across most of these 51 states on zone range alone. Mountain and coastal areas sit outside the ranges used here, so check your own zone before ordering.
- Pennsylvania
- New Jersey
- New York
- Connecticut
- Massachusetts
- Virginia
- Maryland
- Michigan
- Wisconsin
- Ohio
- Indiana
- Illinois
- Minnesota
- Missouri
- North Carolina
- Tennessee
- Georgia
- Texas
- Colorado
- California
- Oregon
- Washington
- New Hampshire
- Vermont
- Maine
- Rhode Island
- Delaware
- West Virginia
- Kentucky
- South Carolina
- Florida
- Alabama
- Mississippi
- Louisiana
- Arkansas
- Oklahoma
- Kansas
- Nebraska
- Iowa
- North Dakota
- South Dakota
- Montana
- Wyoming
- Idaho
- Utah
- Nevada
- Arizona
- New Mexico
- Alaska
- District of Columbia
- Hawaii
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Every list Hellebore belongs to.
Hardy in these zones
Common questions about Hellebore
- Is Hellebore deer resistant?
- Hellebore (Helleborus orientalis) is rated Rarely Damaged on the Rutgers NJAES four-tier scale. Deer almost always leave this alone.
- What hardiness zones does Hellebore grow in?
- Hellebore is hardy in USDA zones 4 to 9. Outside that range it will either not survive winter or will struggle with summer heat.
- Does Hellebore grow in shade?
- Yes. Hellebore tolerates full shade to part shade, which makes it one of the options for a shaded bed where deer also browse.
- How big does Hellebore get?
- Mature height is roughly 12–18 in. Growth rate is slow.
- When does Hellebore bloom?
- Hellebore flowers from February–April.
- Is Hellebore toxic to dogs or cats?
- Yes. The ASPCA lists Hellebore as toxic to cats, dogs, and horses. Site it away from where animals graze, or choose something else if you have a dog that chews.