To learn what conditions species hellebores like, look to where they grow in the wild – in areas where rainfall is low with sunny winters and springs, and hot summers, when their thick leathery leaves help to reduce transpiration. And surprisingly, hellebores aren’t found growing in heavy shade or deep in woodlands, but in a wide range of habitats. They are happy under deciduous trees, they like a little cover in summer as long as they’re facing the sun, but they hate to be waterlogged, loving good drainage, and are often seen growing in limestone cracks, with their rhizomes dry and their roots travelling down to water. Choose an open glade inside a wood for your hellebores and you’ll be rewarded with the best flowers.