African Garden + winter

Lo, How a Rose Ain't Blooming - a December Muse

Lo, how a Rose ain't blooming
on sturdy stems of green.
At Christmas time around here,
the blooms are never seen.
Instead of flowers white,
Beneath the evergreen leaves,
the buds remain curled tight
.

This is my version of the classic carol about the famed Christmas Rose, the Helleborus niger. All of my H. niger plants produce large, beautiful white blooms just in time for... Easter.

December 1 is the start of meteorological winter here in Chicagoland, and it looks like it today. We've picked up 3 inches already this morning and more is coming down. Fortunately, the garden is ready, and I can just enjoy the beauty of the first accumulating snow.

Visit Carolyn Gail at Sweet Home & Garden Chicago for all the Garden Bloggers' Muse Day posts.