Stinking hellebore

A spring-like day at Ring Haw, with the first primroses and hairy violets in flower and bees buzzing around the sallow blossom. This is one of the few places where stinking hellebore Helleborus foetidus can be found as a probable native species. It's a perennial herb of shallow calcareous soils which is often found in small colonies on the edge of scrub. At Ring Haw it grows in a sheltered corner of a disused limestone quarry. It's widely grown as a garden plant and often establishes itself in urban area, at least for a while.