Family: buttercups (Ranunculaceae)
Flowering time: February–March
Size: 10–30 cm
Habitat: rocky grasslands, forest edges and among shrubs
At the top of the branched flowering stems of the pinnately divided hellebore (Helleborus multifidus) usually develop up to three green flowers, which have a diameter of 4 to 5 cm. The edges of the light-green, ovate sepals overlap slightly at the bottom. The bract beneath the flower is as long as, or only slightly longer than, the diameter of the flowers. The leathery basal leaves, which along the veins on the lower side are hairy, develop only after flowering. The leaves are divided into narrow segments with a serrated edge, which are usually further divided into two or three lobes. The split-leaved hellebore is a poisonous plant! It is associated with warm habitats. It is distributed almost exclusively in the submediterranean part of Slovenia.
